How to Crush a Crush
by smileybubbles08
Summary: The Easy-to-Use Manual on Losing a Stalker. Rule #1: Avoid pursuer at all costs. Rule #2: Under no circumstances should you give pursuer the idea that you're interested. Rule #3: If under any circumstances you break Rule #2, refer to Rule #1. Kacy, Joella
1. Janitor's Closet

**I should not be posting a new story right now, but I can't stop myself. I'm not even sure this chapter is ready to be seen, but I just couldn't wait to get this story up. So, this is my new story, and the full title is "How to Crush a Crush: The Easy-to-Use Manual on Losing a Stalker" but the whole title wouldn't fit, so I had to shorten it down.**

**I decided to write this one in first person, with changing points of view. Hopefully it's not confusing. I just got tired of writing in third person.**

**I don't own JONAS. If I did, there would be a random song in every episode. Which is why I'm putting a random song in every chapter of this story. Hooray!**

**How to Crush a Crush: The Easy-to-Use Manual on Losing a Stalker**

**Chapter One: Janitor's Closet**

_***Nick***_

When my brothers and I hit it big with our band, we knew that things were going to change. It was exciting to all of us for different reasons. For Kevin, it was rocking out on stage, doing power slides in tight pants while shedding on his guitar. For Joe, it was—what else?—the girls. And for me, it was the entire world hearing the songs I had poured my soul into.

But the three of us soon learned that being a rock star comes with a price. I could go on for hours about the lack of privacy or the sleep deprivation, but those were the least of my problems. Now, don't think that I'm ungrateful or anything. Believe me, I was fully aware of how lucky I was. But no one can be as lucky as my brothers and I were without something constantly out to ruin it. You see, fame had provided us with a major pain, and her name was Macy Misa.

I could put this as nicely as possible and just say that Macy was a huge fan who sometimes crossed the line, but what's the point? You'll probably realize the ugly truth sooner or later, so I'll just come out and say it. Macy Misa was a stalker. This wasn't one of those, memorizes-all-of-our-songs-and-plasters-her-locker-with-our-posters kind of fan. This was a dresses-her-boyfriend-up-as-my-twin kind of fan. This girl was not just scary. She was straight out of the Twilight Zone creepy.

And the worst thing about our stalker fan? She went to our school. That's right, JONAS's number one fan saw us every day. Memorized our class schedules. Memorized our _locker combinations_. I knew this because Kevin forgot his combination about once a week, and one of those times, Macy witnessed it and taught him the code she used to remember it. How could we deal with a fan like that? How could we explain to her how wrong that was?

So, obviously, telling her the truth was not an option. There was no getting through to her. She was _obsessed_.

_***Macy***_

I was not obsessed with JONAS. I mean, sure, I had a T-shirt proclaiming that I was the #1 JONAS Super Fan, and I had a collage of Kevin on my closet door, and I had watched the boys dial their locker combinations so often that I memorized their combinations and then opened Joe's locker when he wasn't around and snagged a scarf out of it so that I could carry it around with me wherever I went and smell it when I got depressed.

Okay, so there was nothing normal about me when it came to JONAS. But I couldn't help it. My best friend always tried to remind me that they were just ordinary guys who happened to be famous, but I couldn't see them that way. Nick with his intense eyes, and Joe with his confident swagger, and Kevin…well, Kevin was just the sweetest guy you could ever meet, the kind of guy who would go out of his way to make your day when you're feeling down. Combine that with the fact that he was gorgeous, and it was easy to mistake him for some sort of an angel. Which, I believed, was the reason his name rhymed with "heaven".

So, yeah, I was obsessed with them. But can you blame me? They were cute, they were rock stars, and there were three, I repeat, THREE of them. And I was lucky enough to see them every day.

Unfortunately, I wasn't as lucky as Stella. I have to admit, I was a teensy bit jealous that my best friend was best friends with JONAS. It only made me more obsessed with the band. So obsessed, that one day, I found myself stuffed in Kevin Lucas's locker.

At the time, it seemed like a good plan. I'd been curious for days, because a fan sent an email to me on my JONAS fansite wondering whether a JONAS's locker was big enough to hold JONAS's biggest fan. Now, I wasn't sure how such a thought occurred to Annabel from Spokane, Washington, but I figured that any fan that spent her time pondering these things deserved to have her question answered. So one Tuesday afternoon, I grabbed a stepladder, dialed Kevin's locker combination, shoved aside a gallon-sized Ziploc bag full of empty Tic-Tac containers, and climbed in.

It was a tight squeeze, but Annabel from Spokane would be pleased to know that JONAS's biggest fan did indeed fit inside of a JONAS locker. She would probably be less pleased to know that JONAS's biggest fan would suffocate in said locker if somebody didn't come for her soon, as she had realized a moment too late that it was not a good idea to shut the locker door on herself.

And that was the event that triggered the series of unlikely mishaps that were about to occur.

_***Kevin***_

"Seriously, guys. She's becoming a problem."

"Nick, relax," I replied. "Sure, she's a little..."

"Eccentric," Joe filled in.

"Yeah, that," I agreed. "But when has she ever harmed us?"

Nick raised his eyebrows. "I don't know. Let's see. There was the time she dropped a bowling ball on your foot. The time she stabbed your foot with those oars. The time she slammed your hand in her locker. Do I need to go on?"

"Yesterday she hit me in the face with a volleyball," Joe added.

"And do I need to remind you of the time she dressed up her date as me and started calling him by my name?" Nick said. "I know that's not physical harm, but I am emotionally scarred for life."

"But guys," I objected, "I think she's past all that. It's been a while since she's had one of her fan girl moments." I began dialing my locker combination. "When was the last time Macy did something truly disturbing?"

My question was answered when my locker door swung open, revealing the sheepish face of Macy Misa.

My brothers and I, taken by surprise, did what any high school boys would do in our situation. We screamed in our girliest voices and ran for our lives.

xoxoxo

"Ouch! Kevin, you're standing on my foot."

"Get your bony elbow out of my ribcage!"

"Who's pulling my hair? Seriously!"

"Hey! That was on purpose!"

"Shh. She'll find us!"

"Are you kidding? Who'd search for us in the janitor's closet?"

My brothers and I found sanctuary in the school janitor's closet, which was, ironically, the dirtiest room in the school. It was also the smallest closet I had even been in, which was why the three of us could not all fit comfortably inside.

"Kevin?" we heard a voice call from outside. "Kevin, Joe, Nick? Where are you?"

"It's Macy," Joe hissed.

"Shh!" Nick hushed. "We know it's Macy."

"I'm sorry I scared you!" Macy shouted. "Guys? Where the heck did they run off to?"

"You guys," Joe whispered. "You know I'm claustrophobic, right?"

"Shh!" Nick hissed again. "We can't get out of here until our stalker goes away."

"Okay, Macy's crazy," I admitted. "And she tends to come across as slightly…stalker-ish. But do you really think she's dangerous?"

"Shh!" Nick said a third time, as Macy's footsteps grew closer and closer to the closet door.

"You guys," Joe whispered. "I really think I might suffocate in here."

I shook my head. "If ever there was an appropriate time to break out in song," I sighed, "this would be it."

_Standing in a bucket  
Tangled in a mop  
Hiding from a girl  
who just doesn't know when to stop  
She cornered us at the lockers  
and she chased us down the hall  
And now we're stuck in here  
staring at these closing walls_

_Now we're standing in a janitor's closet  
Nothing to do but sing our song  
Hearing this, you'd probably think we've lost it  
and we wish that we could say you're wrong  
But we've all gone crazy since this crazy girl came and crazied up our lives  
School we can handle  
but this we can't survive_

_The smell of bleach fumes in the air  
and something sticky on the floor  
But we can hear her little footsteps  
walking right outside the door  
Now we're trapped here with the rags and brooms  
with no way to escape  
We're just stuck here  
waiting for a change in fate_

_Now we're standing in a janitor's closet  
Nothing to do but sing our song  
Hearing this, you'd probably think we've lost it  
and we wish that we could say you're wrong  
But we've all gone crazy since this crazy girl came and crazied up our lives  
School we can handle  
but this we can't survive_

_***Stella***_

When you're the stylist for three rock star brothers, and the best friend of said rock stars' biggest fan, your idea of "normal" is quite different from most people's ideas of "normal". For example, most people would not find coaxing their best friend out of a tree outside their school because JONAS is serving detention on the third floor to be a normal activity. But to me, doing normal high school activities that normal high school students did on normal weekday afternoons was just not normal to me.

So when I spotted my best friend searching the hallways for JONAS, I knew it was going to be a normal day.

"Kevin? Nick? Guys?"

"Macy, what are you doing?" I asked, approaching my best friend in the school hallway.

"I'm looking for the guys," Macy explained. "So I can apologize to them."

I sighed. "Macy, what did you do now?"

She cringed. "I might have popped out of one of their lockers after class."

"Oh, Macy. Remember that talk we had about invasions of privacy?"

"'There's a fine line between flattering and just plain scary,'" Macy recited.

"So what did we learn today?" I asked Macy, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"That stuffing myself into Kevin's locker is scary."

"And?"

"And that a JONAS locker is indeed big enough to contain JONAS's biggest fan."

"Boundaries, Macy," I said, shaking the small girls' shoulders. "You need to respect the guys' boundaries."

"You can't expect me to know everything," Macy defended herself, pulling my hands off of her shoulders. "I'm just a person."

I sighed. "And you're also my best friend. Which is why I'm letting you off the hook this time." I eyed the janitor's closet door that stood directly behind my friend. "Now why don't you run to your locker, and I'll meet you there in just a second."

Macy nodded and left in the direction of her locker. Once she was out of sight, I seized the doorknob and pulled open the janitor's closet door. Joe Lucas tumbled out, followed closely behind by Nick, who fell on top of Joe, and Kevin, who landed on both of his brothers.

Joe struggled to lift himself off the ground, but this task was not made any easier with his brothers weighing him down.

"Kevin?" Nick sqeaked.

"Uh huh?"

"If it's not any trouble, would you mind _getting off_?"

"Oh, yeah," Kevin said, jumping to his feet. "Right."

Nick stood up and then helped Joe to his feet.

"Next time I choose the hiding place," Joe told his brothers.

"Seriously, guys, there's no need to hide from Macy," I said, brushing lint from the front of Joe's shirt.

"Stella," Joe replied. "How would you react if a tiny person jumped out of _your_ locker?"

"Okay, that would probably freak me out," I admitted. "But you know Macy. She doesn't know how to _not_ go to extremes. And not just with you three. With everything she does. It's just the way she is." I looked at the oldest Lucas brother. "You can understand that, can't you, Kevin?"

"What? I'm not like that!" Kevin objected, before spotting a fly that had just landed on the wall and destroying it with an animated karate kick, accompanied by a loud, "Hi-yah!"

"Dude, it's easier if you just use a flyswatter or something," Joe informed him.

"Easier? Maybe. More fun? No way."

"Can we get back to our issue, here?" Nick asked his brothers. "I think the best way to deal with Macy at this point, is just to avoid her altogether."

"Nick, that's stupid," I argued. "Don't listen to Nick, you guys. The best way to deal with Macy is to be friends with her so she can get used to you."

"Oh, that's a great plan," Nick replied, sarcastically. "Let's start by letting her familiarize herself with the insides of our lockers."

"Joe, you agree with me, right?" I asked the middle brother.

Joe wrinkled his forehead. "I don't know, Stella. I mean, maybe Nick is right."

"He usually is," Kevin interjected.

"I usually am," Nick agreed.

"See, Nick," I replied, "that's the difference between you and me. Because I'm _always_ right."

_***Macy***_

"I don't mean to be like that, you know."

"I know, Macy," Stella comforted. "You've just got way too much energy in way too small of a body. It's one of the things I love about you."

"And that's why you're my best friend."

"But maybe, for the guys' sake, and for your sake, and even for my sake, you should try to tone it down just a little."

"I am trying, Stella. You know I am, but…"

I drifted off as something, or more specifically, _someone_, caught my attention down the hall. Ever had somebody stare at you, only to quickly turn away when you realize they're staring? Everyone has, right? Well, have you ever had someone stare at you and then _not_ turn away when you realize they're watching you?

"Macy, what are you looking at?" Stella asked, starting to turn around.

"No, don't look!"

Stella froze in place. "What am I not looking at?"

"Stella, I think Hayden Bradley is staring at you."

Stella's eyes widened in excitement. "Really? He is so cute! Do you think he likes me or something? Are you sure he's staring at me? Maybe he's staring at you. He's totally hot, right?"

"Too many sentences in one breath, Stella."

"Sorry. But he is really cute."

"As cute as Joe?"

"Macy!" Stella cried, looking around to make sure no one heard. "Not so loud."

"Relax, Stella. Everyone at Horace Mantis Academy knows you like Joe. Actually, I'm pretty sure everyone in New Jersey knows it. Including Joe, who likes you back…remind me again why you two are still just friends?"

"It's not that simple."

"Of course it's not," I replied. "You're Stella Malone. You can't just let things be simple. You have to go and make things all complicated. Remember your quote in our eighth grade yearbook? 'When life becomes simple, you know you're forgetting to do something important.' Who says things like that?"

"Well at least I don't climb into people's lockers just to see if I can fit."

"Touché."

I took a peek behind Stella to see if Hayden was still watching us. He wasn't. He was looking at his basketball buddies, who were talking animatedly. Hayden, however, wasn't taking part in the conversation. He stood sort of outside of the group, listening to the conversation, but not contributing. Not even reacting, really. There was something intense about his eyes as he watched the group, his hands in the pockets of his letterman jacket. Stella was right; he was definitely handsome. The way his sandy brown hair fell into his icy blue eyes and how the sharp curves of his jaw and his sunken-in cheeks framed his slightly-parted lips. He wasn't just cute. He was gorgeous. So gorgeous, in fact, that I didn't even mind that he was looking our way again.

I gasped when I realized he'd caught me staring.

"What?" Stella asked, not daring to turn around. "Is he still looking?"

"I have to go," I muttered, turning and rushing away.

_***Joe***_

Stella didn't notice me standing three feet away from her. She was too busy staring across the hall at some jock.

I balled my fists in anger. Just because Stella and I agreed that we couldn't jeopardize our friendship by dating, didn't mean it was okay for her to look at other guys. Or, maybe that was exactly what it meant. But I still was not okay with it.

"Hey Stella," I greeted her as calmly as I could.

"Oh, hi Joe," she responded, snapping to attention. "I didn't see you there."

"So I noticed." I nodded my head at the jock she'd been staring at. "Who's the muscle head?"

"His name is Hayden," she replied. "And he's not a muscle head. He's sweet…mysterious…handsome…"

"Yeah, he sounds great," I interrupted.

"I get it," Stella said with a smile. "Changing the subject. So, uh, was Nick serious about avoiding Macy at school? That sounds pretty crazy to me."

"No. What's crazy is dressing up Randall what's-his-name up as Nick and flaunting him around at a basketball game. Nick's talking about adding new laws about Macy to the JONAS Book of Law. Starting with 'Avoid Macy at all costs.'"

"Are you gonna go along with it?" Stella asked, her eyes boring into me as if she was waiting for me to give the answer she wanted me to give.

"I guess."

Clearly, that was the wrong answer.

"Joe, Macy's my best friend!"

"Your best friend is a psycho."

"Joseph!"

Now I knew I was in trouble.

"What?"

Stella sputtered, clearly trying to think of something to say that would make me change my mind about Macy. Which only made me more determined to stand my ground.

"Well, if you're avoiding my best friend," she said finally, "then I'm avoiding you."

I crossed my arms. "Fine," I replied, trying to keep the nervousness out of my voice. "But you'll probably cave before I do."

Stella crossed her arms to mimic me. "I doubt it."

"We'll just see then."

"Fine."

"Fine."

"Fine."

"You already said that."

Stella threw down her arms in frustration. "Fine!" she cried, turning and storming away.

_***Nick***_

I was on my guard. Macy could pop out anywhere, at any time. I became aware of that when she popped out of Kevin's locker after class.

I had to be extra careful. I was dealing with a maniac.

I looked over each shoulder as I walked down the hall. Anyone watching me would have called me paranoid. And I guess they wouldn't be too far from the truth. I was acting a little crazy. _But_, I justified, _what better way to deal with a crazy person?_

"Hey Nick," a girl from my geometry class said, stopping me in the hall. She was looking at me as if I was insane and possibly dangerous. Maybe prowling through the halls like a leopard in the jungle trying not to be seen was not the best way of avoiding Macy.

I stood up straight, acknowledging the tall red-haired girl. "Oh, hey Alicia. What's up?"

"I was wondering if you could help me with my…"

I spotted a familiar brown head of hair turning the corner into the hallway I was standing in. It was time to make a break for it.

"Hold that thought!" I interrupted Alicia, bolting to the nearest door.

A poor decision on my part.

I paid no attention to my surroundings as I pressed myself against the door to prevent Macy from walking in. Then I felt someone pushing against the door, trying to open it.

"Nick?" I heard Alicia call from the hallway.

I took a step away from the door, allowing her walk in.

"Yeah?" I asked, as Alicia stepped into the room.

"This is a girls' bathroom," she informed me.

I felt my cheeks grow hot. "I can explain."

Alicia nodded, a concerned look in her eyes. "Please do."

"Well, see, there's this girl…"

Alicia's eyes grew even wider. "On second thought, please don't."

I swallowed hard. "That was a poor choice of words."

"So…you're not in here stalking girls?"

"No!" I said quickly. "I'm avoiding a girl who's stalking me!"

Alicia nodded. "Well, if the girl you're avoiding is Macy Misa, your number one fan, you're safe. She's gone now."

I heaved a great sigh of relief. "Thanks Alicia," I said, making my way out the door.

"Nick?"

I turned back briefly. "Yes?"

"Next time, use the boys' room."

I forced out a laugh. "I'll keep that in mind."

**xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo**

**So, that was my first chapter, which didn't have much of a plot to it, but it's sort of introducing you to the story. And to the major OCs of this story: Hayden and Alicia. The real action comes in the second chapter, which I warn you not to expect too soon. I'm in school now, so I won't be able to update very often. It's gonna be seven chapters long (lucky seven). Only half as long as 14 Reasons, because I really don't want it to drag on.**

**Like I said earlier, the guys will randomly break into song in every chapter, usually at times when it wouldn't really be convenient to break into song. (For example, while you're trying not to make a sound because you're hiding in a janitor's closet from a crazed fan.) The chapter titles are all the names of the songs featured in the chapters, although I don't think that's a really important detail. I'm just rambling now.**

**I apologize to those of you who expected this to be full of Kacy, but unlike 14 Reasons, that develops later on instead of right in the beginning. And, in case you haven't figured it out yet, this story focuses on all five of the main characters instead of just Kevin and Macy. Hope that doesn't disappoint you.**

**Please review, and I'll be happy forever. Okay, I can't really promise to be happy forever. But I'll be happy for the brief moment that it takes me to read your review.**

**Sincerely yours,  
Bubbles**

**Next Chapter: In Too Deep**


	2. In Too Deep

**Okay, I just finished this chapter and I'm putting it up in a bit of a hurry, so apologies for any mistakes. I'd give you a big long apology for not updating sooner, but I have class in 7 minutes, so I'll just give you a quick apology. SOOOOOOOOOOOO SOOOOOOOOORRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!**

**Lot of stuff crammed into this chapter. Have at it!**

**I don't own JONAS.**

**How to Crush a Crush: The Easy-to-Use Manual on Losing a Stalker**

**Chapter 2: In Too Deep**

_***Stella***_

"Let me get this straight," Macy whispered, leaning across the library table so I could hear her clearly. "You and Joe got in a fight…over me? And now you're not speaking?"

"That's right."

This answer did not seem to satisfy her. She fiddled with the "#1" charm she'd fastened around her wrist.

"And this all started because Joe called me crazy?"

"That's right."

Macy still seemed perplexed by this.

"And you two are competing to see who can go longer without speaking to the other?"

"I won't speak to him until he stops avoiding you."

"I don't get it," she said, finally, twirling her charm in her fingers.

"What's not to get?" I asked.

"Don't you…Don't you think that Joe's kind of right? Or at least, not entirely wrong?"

"You're right, you don't get it," I told her.

"So explain."

I sighed. "Macy, it's not about who's right or wrong. It's about who wins."

"So you're just fighting…for the sake of fighting?"

"That's right."

"Stella, that's stupid."

"It is not!" I defended myself. "I mean, at the time, I was just being loyal to you. And then I realized later that he has every right to feel the way he does. But I couldn't just tell him he was right."

Macy smiled, as if she finally understood. "So this is about your pride."

I gasped, offended by this remark. "It is not about my pride!" I cried. "It's about…okay, it's about my pride. But so what?"

"Worry too much about your pride, and it'll bite you in the butt later," she warned, tugging absent-mindedly at her "#1" charm.

"That new chain's too big," I replied. "And you're gonna lose that lucky charm of yours again if you don't stop pulling on it like that."

Macy shrugged. "I'm not the one who's gonna need the luck."

I frowned, nervously. For my pride's sake, I seriously hoped she was wrong.

_***Joe***_

"Nick!"

My brother peered over his shoulder, looking for the voice that was calling him.

"Nick!" she called again.

"Oh," Nick said, spotting the red-haired girl who was approaching us. "Hi, Alicia."

"I was distracted yesterday," she said, stopping to catch her breath, "by you running into the girls' room, and since I was so distracted when you ran into the girls' room, I forgot to ask you what I'd meant to ask you before you ran in the girls' room and distracted me."

I frowned. "What?"

"Yeah, what?" Nick asked.

"Sorry," she apologized, tugging nervously at her shirt. "I wanted to ask you something yesterday."

"Oh. Okay," Nick replied. "What did you want to ask me?"

"What did I want to ask you?"

Nick blinked. "Am I supposed to guess or something?"

Alicia laughed awkwardly. "I, um, wanted to ask you if…if you would help me with my geometry."

I had a feeling that whatever she'd planned on asking him had nothing to do with math. But if Nick noticed that Alicia was acting strangely, he didn't show it.

He shrugged. "Sure. When?"

Alicia's eyes grew wide. "When?"

"What time works for you?" he asked.

I wasn't sure when simple sentences became so complicated. Either this girl had a crush on my brother, or else geometry was not her worst subject.

"If you're not busy after school…" she said.

"After school is perfect," Nick said, quickly. "You want to come over?"

"You want me…You want me to go to your house?"

"What's wrong?" Nick asked, finally noticing that the red-haired girl was not acting normal. "You don't like fire houses?"

"No. I mean, yeah. I mean, your house is good. I'll see you after school."

I grinned at my brother as the girl rushed away.

"What?" he asked nervously, reaching a hand to his face. "Do I have macaroni on my chin?"

"She likes you," I replied, simply.

"Who, Alicia? No way."

"Nick," I mimicked in my girliest voice. "Can you help me with my homework? Your house? I'd loooove to."

Nick raised his eyebrows. "Okay, one: she doesn't sound anything like that. And two: shut up."

I nudged him, grinning. "You like her too, don't you?"

"No," Nick replied. "I don't."

I nudged him again.

"What?" he cried, shoving me away.

"What were you doing in the girls' bathroom, Nick?"

_***Macy***_

There he was again.

It was strange, but ever since the incident with Stella the day before, I'd been seeing Hayden Bradley everywhere. And I had the feeling that it was no coincidence. He'd watched my hockey practice, tennis practice, soccer practice, volleyball practice, and badminton practice, and was now sitting on the bleachers as I warmed up by the pool for swimming practice. As far as I knew, the only team he belonged to was the boys' basketball team, so I saw no reason for him to be at any of my practices.

I wasn't sure whether this was flattering or creepy. Was this how JONAS felt about me?

"Hey, Charlotte?" I whispered to the girl doing her stretches beside me.

"Yeah?"

"Is Hayden Bradley staring at you?"

Charlotte looked up at Hayden's secluded spot on the bleachers. "No, I'm pretty sure he's looking at you."

"Are you sure?" I asked.

Charlotte nodded. "Lucky girl. Maybe you should go talk to him."

"You think?"

"Absolutely."

"I don't know," I replied, hesitantly. "Stella kind of likes him. Maybe I should just…"

"Everyone knows Stella and Joe are destined to spend eternity together," Charlotte cut me off. "She can't just call dibs on every cute guy she sees. Besides, it's not Stella Hayden's staring at."

"I guess…"

She gave me a little shove. "Go on."

I stumbled forward as she pushed me, lost my footing momentarily, and tried to look graceful as I caught my balance. Blushing, I made my way to the bleachers.

"Hey," Hayden greeted me when I'd reached him.

"Hi," I responded, rubbing my bare arms nervously.

"You on the swim team?" he asked.

I resisted the urge to ask him whether his first clue was the bathing suit or the fact that I was doing stretches with the team by the pool.

"I am," I replied. "Do you like to sit in on all the girls' sports practices?"

"Are you on all of the girls' sports teams?" Hayden asked in reply.

"Pretty much."

"Then yes."

I almost fell backwards at that the forwardness of his answer. How was I supposed to react to that?

"So you were watching me."

"Would it bother you?"

I thought for a moment. "No."

"Then yes. I was watching you."

I fiddled nervously with my lucky "#1" charm. "Why?" I asked.

"You intrigue me."

"Misa!" the coach shouted from the poolside. "Anytime you're ready to start practice, you can stop flirting with Mr. Bradley."

Blushing furiously, I made my way down the bleachers.

_***Kevin***_

"You and Stella aren't speaking?" I asked.

"Nope," Joe replied. "Not until she gives in first."

"What if you give in first?"

"I won't," Joe said, simply.

I shrugged. "That's as good an answer as any, I guess."

I stopped our younger brother, who was speeding down the hallway. "Hey Nick. What's the rush? Joe's watching my cheerleading practice. Not to watch me of course. You're welcome to join him."

Joe grinned. "He can't. Nick has a study date with his girlfriend."

Nick rolled his eyes. "She's not my girlfriend."

"What's your girlfriend's name, Nick?" I asked.

"Alicia. I mean, she's not my…Shut up."

_***Macy***_

I searched my swim locker once more. It was still empty. I sighed in frustration and got down on my hands and knees, searching under all of the locker room benches. No luck. Where was that charm? Could I have lost it in the pool?

I wanted to hit myself for not heeding Stella's warning. How could I lose my lucky charm _again_?

I walked outside of the locker room to find that Hayden had abandoned the bleachers. The rest of the swim team was long gone as well. I made my way to the edge of the pool to peer inside. I scanned the bottom for my charm. A golden object resting on the floor of the pool all the way at the other end caught my eye. My charm!

I was glad I was still wearing my bathing suit. It looked like I was going to have to jump in after it. It would probably be best not to tell Stella about this incident. I wasn't looking forward to an "I told you so."

Stripping off the damp t-shirt I had pulled on over my suit, I dove gracefully into the pool. I took a moment to enjoy the warm water and the stinging of the chlorine in my eyes before swimming along the pool floor to retrieve my charm. When I finally reached the other end of the pool, I realized how right Stella had been about my chain. It was much too long. I wound it around my wrist twice this time before fastening it. It would not be falling off now.

Deciding it was time for air, I kicked my legs to surface, but to my alarm, I felt myself being tugged back down. By the wrist.

This could not be good. I looked down to find that my charm had gotten caught in a filter. Had I been above the surface and had any air in my lungs, I'd have groaned. But my famous high-capacity lungs were shriveling up inside my chest. I fumbled with the clasp, but to no avail. I tugged at the charm, trying to free it from the filter without it breaking. When that failed, I pulled harder, no longer caring if I broke my lucky charm. I just needed air.

My chest felt as if it were going to implode. My head felt…light. As if it could just float to the surface any minute and leave my body behind. And the next thing I knew the blue underwater world around me turned pitch black.

_***Kevin***_

"Where was the last place you had your backpack?" Joe asked.

I rolled my eyes. "If I knew, it wouldn't be lost. Would it?"

"Okay, not a good question," Joe admitted. "What classes did you have today?"

"Let's see. Biology, English, orchestra, P.E..." I paused, remembering something important. "I had my swimming final in gym today!" I exclaimed. "I probably left my bag on the bleachers by the pool!"

"Well go get it!" Joe urged. "I'll wait for you here. I can keep the squad company."

Joe grinned as the cheerleaders gathered around him.

I rolled my eyes. But who was I to judge? I had joined the squad, after all, so that I could hoist up pretty, slender girls by their waists.

I jogged down the hall to the school's indoor pool, where I'd had my test that morning. I considered Nick's warning about avoiding Macy at all costs, but I brushed the thought away. I was sure the swim team would be long gone by that time. It was well past 5:30. I'd have been home myself, had Becky Longwater not broken her ankle so that the squad had to completely re-choreograph the routine.

I pushed open the doors to the pool and immediately spotted my backpack sitting on the bleachers. I heaved a sigh of relief. I'd gone through four backpacks already this year, and could really not afford to tell my mother I'd lost another one. I began climbing the bleachers, glancing briefly at the shimmering blue of the swimming pool. I turned away from the pool, was overcome by the strangest feeling that something was wrong, and then turned back.

Something was very wrong indeed. There was something—no, _someone_—in the pool. And she was not moving.

Taking no time to think about what I was going to do, I pulled off my lucky boot and rushed down the bleachers. Sucking in a giant breath of air, I jumped into the water and kicked my way to the bottom of the pool.

It was Macy. I didn't recognize her by her face, as I was looking at the back of her head, but by the "#1" charm she had chained to her wrist. It was caught in a filter, which, I assumed, was the reason she was currently unconscious.

I tugged at the charm with all of my strength, and soon the chain snapped. The charm loosened itself from the filter and fell into my hand. Shoving it into my shirt pocket, I seized Macy by the waist and swam to the surface.

With Macy's unconscious body hanging limply over my shoulder, I ran to the nurse's office, listening to the "click" of my right boot on the floor and the "squish" of my left sock.

"She's not breathing!" I cried to the nurse, as soon as I'd burst in the door. "I found her in the pool!"

The nurse initially looked shocked at my sudden entrance, but quickly gained composure.

"Lay her down on the bed," the she instructed me. "Don't worry, young man. I'm trained in CPR."

I nodded and watched nervously from the doorway as the nurse breathed into Macy's mouth and pressed repeatedly on her chest, just like Chrissy did to Roberta on _Now and Then_, only I was pretty sure Macy wasn't faking it. I didn't realize until I heard a small cough from Macy, that I'd been holding my breath.

_***Macy***_

My eyes snapped open, and I coughed up a mouthful of water. Then I choked on the mouthful of water I'd just coughed up, and coughed some more.

"Where am I?" I asked the woman standing over me, when I could finally speak.

"You're in the school nurse's office," she replied. "You just had a pretty close call."

My memory came flooding back to me. "I lost my charm," I told her. "In the pool." I touched my wrist, and found that it was bare. "Where's my charm?"

The nurse pointed at the door. "You'll have to ask the young man who…saved you. That's strange."

"What's strange?" I asked, sitting up to look at the empty doorway.

"He was right there," she said.

"The boy who saved me?"

She nodded. "He was standing in the doorway watching you. He was soaking wet and wearing one shoe."

"One shoe?" I repeated, confused.

"It's like he just disappeared," the nurse said, mystified. She looked back at me, eyebrows raised. "It looks like you have a guardian angel."

_***Nick***_

"Now, given that circle F is inscribed in triangle ABC, prove that angle DCF is congruent to angle ECF."

Alicia raised her eyebrows. "I have no idea what you just said."

I nodded. "That's okay. All you have to do is…"

"Nick?" she interrupted.

"Yeah?"

"Can we take a break? We've been at this for a long time."

"Sure," I replied, checking my watch. She was right. We'd been studying for hours. "I think you're really getting a hang of the proofs."

"You're a good teacher," Alicia replied, resting her hand on mine.

My breath got caught in my throat for a moment, although I wasn't sure why. I think I'd just become fully aware that Alicia Roberts was a girl.

I cleared my throat. "Well, uh…I believe that's enough geometry for today."

My first instinct was to escape. The last thing I needed was Joe's voice in my head whispering, "Falling too hard too fast."

"We can do something else," Alicia suggested. "If you want to."

A completely innocent suggestion. But one which gave me less than innocent thoughts.

I had officially entered The Danger Zone.

My next instinct was to lean forward and kiss her. An instinct I would have followed through on if Joe and Kevin hadn't entered the kitchen at that moment.

My face was inches from Alicia's when Kevin burst into the kitchen, sopping wet and clinging to his backpack and his boot. I wasn't sure why the boot wasn't on his foot, but I decided not to ask questions. Kevin was followed closely behind by Joe, who was dry and had both shoes on his feet.

"Nick, we need to tell you something," Joe informed me, urgently.

Alicia cleared her throat. "Oh, hey, look at the time. I should really get going."

"Wait!" I cried. "You don't have to…" But Alicia was already out the door. "…go."

I told myself that it was the sight of Kevin that scared her away, and not the fact that I had just tried to kiss her.

_***Joe***_

"All of the cheerleaders were gone by the time Kevin got there," I told Nick. "And instead of holding the backpack he had gone to find, he was soaking wet and wearing one boot."

"Congrats, Kevin," Nick said, slapping our oldest brother on the back. "You're a hero."

Kevin grinned, pleased with himself. "I guess I did save Macy's life, didn't I?"

Nick nodded. "It's too bad you can never tell her."

Kevin blinked. "What?"

"Why can't he tell her?" I asked, confused.

Nick rolled his eyes. "Guys, Macy's already crazy about us," he explained. "How do you think she'd react to discovering that one of us rescued her from drowning?"

"Well, she'd probably be eternally grateful," Kevin guessed. "And really happy. And she'd probably…never give us a moment's peace for the rest of our lives. You're right. Let's not tell her."

This was not going to end well. I could picture a thousand ways in my head that this could go wrong. Sighing, I pulled Nick aside.

"This is bad," I informed him.

"It's not that bad," Nick replied. "As long as it stays a secret…"

"And how good is Kevin at keeping secrets?" I interrupted.

Nick looked over at Kevin, who had just found our younger brother Frankie, and was telling an extremely detailed story, using his boot as a visual aid. Judging from the way he was holding the boot, I could only assume that he was pretending it was Macy and he was saving its life.

"Okay, so Kevin's gonna be a problem. But as long as one of us is keeping an eye on him at all times, we're safe."

I raised my eyebrows. "For how long? Until we all graduate? Until Macy is no longer our number one super fan? The rest of our lives?"

"Until this all blows over," Nick replied. "Give it a few days, Joe. Kevin will forget all about this."

_***Nick***_

I rolled over in my bed, unable to sleep. Usually Joe's soft snoring and Kevin's random mumblings were enough to distract me from my thoughts and put me right to sleep, but tonight they did nothing for me. Joe was breathing silently, Kevin wasn't saying a word, and I couldn't get Alicia off my mind. More specifically, I couldn't erase the image of her rushing out the door after I had so suddenly leaned forward to kiss her after our casual study session. For a guy who was three IQ points shy of being a certified genius, I could really be an idiot. Clearly, those three points counted for something.

Being a generally smart person had its down side. Sometimes I felt like I had so many thoughts that I didn't know what to do with them all. They kept me up at night because I didn't have enough time during the day to ponder them. Sometimes the only thing to do was to put them into song.

_It's 2 A.M. and I'm wide awake.  
Can't get you off my mind.  
The room's too quiet.  
All I hear are my thoughts.  
I think about you all the time._

_Why do you keep me up at night?  
Up at night.  
Why do I feel like I'm losing this fight?  
Losing this fight._

_I'm in too deep.  
I'm trying to keep my cool.  
I've fallen for you  
too hard to fast.  
I know I'm way past sleep.  
I'm in too deep._

_I fall asleep, you're in my dreams.  
How can you be everywhere?  
I wake up  
and I still see your eyes,  
your face, your lips, your hair._

_Why do you keep me up at night?  
Up at night.  
Why do I feel like I'm losing this fight?  
Losing this fight._

_I'm in too deep.  
I'm trying to keep my cool.  
I've fallen for you  
too hard to fast.  
I know I'm way past sleep.  
I'm in too deep.  
I'm trying to keep my cool.  
I've fallen for you  
too hard too fast.  
I know I'm way past sleep.  
Because you've pulled me in too deep._

**Next Chapter: The Game Nobody Wins**


	3. The Game Nobody Wins

**I just wrote a long intro to this chapter, but just as I was about to save the changes, the web page expired and I had to start all over. I'm not even going to try to remember what I wrote.**

**Thanks to angelwings and xovickixo for reviewing chapter two. Reviews are greatly appreciated. Hope you enjoy the chapter!**

**I don't own JONAS. Or Romeo and Juliet. But I take credit for the songs featured in this fic.**

**How to Crush a Crush: The Easy-to-Use Manual on Losing a Stalker**

**Chapter 3: The Game Nobody Wins**

_***Nick***_

"Now remember, guys," I instructed my two older brothers as we entered Horace Mantis Academy. "No matter what, nobody finds out that it was Kevin who saved Macy's life yesterday."

"Right," Joe agreed, nodding. "And not a word to Macy."

"Got it," Kevin said. "Not a word to… Hi Macy!"

Joe smacked Kevin on the arm as the petite brunette acknowledged us, clearly distracted by something.

"Hey guys," Macy mumbled, not at all stunned by the fact that she was being greeted by her idols.

Kevin looked concerned. "Is something wrong, Mace?"

"I can't talk now," Macy muttered, gazing suspiciously at the teenagers in the hallway around us making their ways to their lockers.

"Not even to us?" Kevin asked in disbelief.

She gave him an apologetic look. "I don't have time. I'm looking for someone."

"Who?" I blurted before I could stop myself.

Macy peeked over her shoulders before leaning toward us dramatically. "Somebody saved my life yesterday," she whispered. "I have a guardian angel."

"Do you know who it is?" Joe ventured nervously.

Macy shook her head, and my brothers and I all heaved sighs of relief.

"I have a suspicion though," she whispered.

"You do?" I choked.

She nodded, hugging her books close to her chest. "Do you guys know Hayden Bradley?"

Joe and I exchanged relieved looks. Kevin, however, didn't understand what she was getting at.

"What about him?" he asked.

"He's been watching me a lot lately," Macy explained.

"And?" Kevin asked, still not catching on.

"And, don't tell Stella this, but I think he's the one."

"You think he's the what?" Kevin asked, receiving a groan from Joe.

"The guy who saved her, Kevin!" I cried. "Macy thinks that Hayden is the one who saved her from drowning."

Kevin frowned. "Hayden Bradley? Really?"

"That's weird," Macy said, ignoring Kevin.

"What's weird?" I asked.

"I thought I just told you guys that someone saved my life," Macy said. "I don't remember telling you that it was from drowning."

"You must be getting forgetful," Joe said quickly.

Macy shrugged. "I must be."

_***Stella***_

I peeked over the top of my geography book as a group of basketball players talked animatedly in the corner of the library. Hayden was among them, not saying a word. As if he was above small talk. It was one of the things about Hayden that I found irresistibly attractive. Besides the silver blue eyes and the flawless Johnny Depp cheekbones. It was simply not possible for any human being to be that good-looking. He had to be some kind of a god. Or maybe an angel.

"Stella!"

I sat up abruptly, noticing my best friend's arrival for the first time.

"Macy! When did you get here?" I asked.

"I've been here for a few minutes," she replied, taking a seat beside me. "And as your friend, it's my duty to tell you that if you were trying to be discreet with your geography book there, it wasn't working."

I blushed, looking toward the basketball boys. Hayden was definitely looking in our direction now.

"Do you think he saw me staring?" I whispered.

Macy shook her head. "You're safe."

"Good. So, any new info on your 'guardian angel'?"

"Stella, this is a serious matter, and your use of air quotes is not appreciated."

"Sorry," I apologized. "But have you found anything on him besides that he only wears one shoe?"

Macy took a quick peek at Hayden before replying, "Nope. Nothing."

"Nothing?"

"I went to the pool this morning," Macy said. "I thought this might end up being like a Cinderella thing, and I'd find the guy's other shoe there. But the place was empty. I didn't even find my charm that I dived in to get yesterday."

"Well, you've gotten a start at least," I told her. "You know that whoever it was has your lucky charm, and for whatever reason, he only wears one shoe when he saves girls' lives."

Macy frowned. "Yeah, I guess that's a start."

"I don't get it," I whispered. "Why would this guy—whoever he is—keep it a secret that he saved your life?"

"I don't know," Macy replied, looking at Hayden again. "You'd think he'd want me know that he's my hero and that I'll probably worship him forever."

Something occurred to me just as she said that. Macy was undeniably gorgeous. I knew of lots of guys who wanted her to notice them. But I knew of three guys at Horace Mantis Academy who did _not_ want Macy Misa to worship them forever. It was time I paid a visit to my favorite rock star sibling trio.

_***Joe***_

"How could she think it was Hayden Bradley?" Kevin asked, as my brothers and I stood in line for lunch at the cafeteria. "I mean, how could it have been a wuss like Hayden Bradley?"

"A wuss?" I replied. "Dude's captain of the basketball team."

"Do you guys realize what a blessing it is that Macy almost died yesterday?" Nick asked, helping himself to a scoop of macaroni.

Kevin and I took a break from our Hayden discussion to give our younger brother an incredulous look.

"Think about it," Nick went on. "Macy was so obsessed with us that it was becoming frightening. But yesterday, she had her life saved by some mysterious guardian angel that only we know was really Kevin, and suddenly, no more Macy problem. I haven't been hit in the face with a hockey stick all day."

"That's true," I agreed. "It's like, her JONAS obsession is over."

"Averted," Nick corrected, as the three of us made our way to a table. "She doesn't have time to obsess over both JONAS and her guardian angel. So now she's devoting all of her time to the guy who saved her life."

"But _I_ saved her life," Kevin cried, dropping his tray onto a table.

"That's true," Nick replied. "But Macy doesn't need to know that."

"I don't know," Kevin said uneasily. "I feel bad lying to her."

"That's not why you feel bad," I replied. "You just want to be a hero."

"I _am_ a hero," Kevin objected. "Why should Hayden Bradley get the credit for it?"

"Do you want Macy off of our backs or not?" Nick asked, digging into his macaroni.

"I know you two do," Kevin mumbled, picking at his peas.

"Hayden is the perfect scapegoat," I observed.

"Dude, he's not my favorite person," Kevin replied. "But I wouldn't say he looks like a goat."

"A scapegoat is someone who gets blamed for something someone else did," Nick explained. "In this case, saving Macy's life."

"Right," I said. "Think about it. He's a jock like Macy. He's reasonably good-looking. He obviously has a thing for her."

"Who has a thing for Macy?" Stella asked, appearing out of nowhere and taking a seat between Kevin and Nick.

"Hayden Bradley," Nick replied.

Stella shook her head. "Impossible."

"Why wouldn't he like her?" Kevin asked. "Macy's pretty."

"Of course she is," Stella replied. "But I've got dibs on Hayden. Macy said she saw him staring at me on Tuesday."

At that, I accidentally gripped my milk carton so tightly that it burst open and splattered chocolate milk all over my face.

"So, I came over here to ask you guys something," Stella said, handing me a napkin.

"I thought you weren't talking to me," I replied, snatching the napkin from her hand.

"This will only take a minute," Stella assured me.

"Shoot," Nick said, as I began chugging my chocolate milk.

"Which one of you guys saved Macy from drowning yesterday?"

Stella's question caught me by surprise, causing me to choke on my chocolate milk and, in turn, spray it all over Kevin.

"What makes you think it was one of us?" Nick asked, calmly handing Kevin a napkin.

"Well, it's like Kevin said," Stella replied. "Macy's pretty. Who wouldn't want to be her hero?" She snapped her head in my direction. "So who was it, Joe?"

I crossed my arms defiantly. "How should I know?"

Stella narrowed her eyes, slowly standing up from her seat at our table. "I'm gonna find out which one of you it was," she assured us. "You might not be talking now, but I'll figure it out somehow. Because one of you has Macy's lucky number one charm."

This time it was Kevin's turn to choke on his chocolate milk, spraying it all over Nick's face.

"Remember boys," Stella said, handing Nick a napkin, "Stella Malone always wins."

"Did you guys know that girls could call dibs on guys?" Nick asked, as Stella walked away.

"Why would Stella want to go out with a wuss like Hayden Bradley?" I replied.

_***Kevin***_

I fiddled with the small gold charm that weighed down the pocket of my trousers as Mrs. Snark went on and on about how _Romeo and Juliet_ was the greatest romantic tragedy ever written. I sat in the back seat of my drama class. Macy Misa sat one row ahead of me, one row to the right. She was staring at Hayden, who sat a row ahead of her, one row to the right.

It occurred to me that I might be able to slip the charm into her bag. It was right there, within arm's reach if I stretched hard enough. I had to get rid of it somehow, and disposing of it was not an option. Just because my brothers didn't want Macy to know that it was me who saved her life didn't give me a right to cause her to have bad luck for the rest of her life.

Looking around to make sure no one was watching, I slowly began to lean forward. I pulled the charm from my pocket, clenching it in my fist. I tried to be nonchalant as I reached my clenched fist toward the open bag that hung on the back of Macy's desk chair.

"Kevin Lucas," Mrs. Snark said.

I snapped to attention, quickly shoving the charm back into my pocket. "Yes?"

"Would you read the part of Romeo for us?"

"Okay," I agreed, nervously, flipping through my book.

"Act one: scene five," Mrs. Snark said. "Macy Misa, would you read the part of Juliet?"

Macy tore her eyes off of Hayden. "What?"

"Juliet, Miss Misa. Act one: scene five."

Macy nodded and flipped her book open to the correct page.

"Go ahead, Romeo," Mrs. Snark instructed. "_My lips_."

"_M-My lips, two blushing pilgrims_," I read, "_ready stand to smooth that rough touch with a tender k-kiss._"

I had no clue what I'd just said. I was pretty sure I'd called my lips pilgrims.

Macy continued. "_Good pilgrim, you do wrong your hand too much, which mannerly devotion shows in this; For saints have hands that pilgrims' hand do touch, and palm to palm is holy palmers' kiss_."

I had no clue what she'd just said. But somehow, I suddenly believed what Mrs. Snark had said about _Romeo and Juliet_ being the greatest romantic tragedy ever written.

"_Have not saints lips, and holy palmers too?_" I read.

"_Ay, pilgrim_," Macy replied in her sweet, syrupy voice, "_lips that they must use in prayer_."

"_O, then dear saint, let lips do what hands do; They pray, grant though lest faith turn to despair_."

I didn't get why Romeo was suddenly asking Juliet to pray with him. He must have been a religious guy. Unless I'd just asked Macy to kiss me, in which case, Romeo was a shameless flirt.

_***Joe***_

"She's just saying she likes that Hayden guy to bug me, right?"

"Sure, Joe. Whatever you say."

"Nick, you're my brother. You're supposed to say something reassuring."

Nick sighed as he pulled a text book from his locker. "Sorry, Joe. It's just hard to take your problems seriously when they always revolve around Stella and how much attention she is or isn't paying you."

"That is not true," I defended myself.

"It is true," Nick assured me. "I wish it wasn't, but it is. And it's also annoying."

"Well, I'm sorry that my problems annoy you," I huffed.

"What problems?" Nick cried. "You like Stella. Stella likes you. There shouldn't be any problems."

"It's not that simple."

"Because you won't let it be. You have to keep playing this stupid game with each other. A game that nobody's gonna win."

I couldn't think of any way to respond to this except to just stand there at my open locker, stunned.

"Now if you'll excuse me," Nick said, spotting somebody behind me, "I have someone I need to go talk to."

As my younger brother walked away, I closed my locker slowly, thinking about what he'd said. Could Nick be right? Were Stella and I just being stupid? Thinking about it was making my brain hurt.

_We're playing a game that nobody wins.  
Pulled out of the water just to jump back in  
because no one can win  
if we're both too scared to make the first move  
so we're both stuck in  
a game that we're both gonna lose._

_We're playing a game that we both lose.  
Running in circles to avoid the truth  
because there's no point in saying  
what we both know deep within  
so we just keep playing  
the game that nobody wins._

_Is this just a game to you?  
Are you just afraid to lose?  
Or do you feel the way I do?  
If I surrender  
will you just laugh in my face?  
Because I'm tired of playing games._

_We're playing a game that nobody wins.  
Pulled out of the water just to jump back in  
because no one can win  
if we're both too scared to make the first move  
so we're both stuck in  
a game that we're both gonna lose._

_We're playing a game that we both lose.  
Running in circles to avoid the truth  
because there's no point in saying  
what we both know deep within  
so we just keep playing  
the game that nobody wins._

_***Nick***_

"Alicia!"

The red-haired girl turned to face me. "Oh, Nick! It's you."

Was she pleased? Surprised? Disappointed?

"Wanna walk to geometry?" I asked her.

Alicia nodded, closing her locker. The two of us started down the hall.

"I, uh, just wanted to apologize," I said. "For yesterday."

"Don't be sorry," Alicia replied. "I have three older brothers, so I know how strange they can be."

She thought I was apologizing for Kevin bursting in soaked from head to toe and wearing one shoe? Had she not noticed that I'd tried to _kiss_ her? Had she erased it from her memory?

"Right. Well, if you still need help in geometry, I'd be glad to keep tutoring you."

"I'd like that."

"Really?"

"Of course," Alicia said. "You're a total genius, right? It feels good knowing that I'm learning from the best."

"Well, it feels good to know that you think I'm the best. I mean, at geometry."

"You're awesome at geometry," Alicia replied, "but that's not the only reason I think you're great."

"Why else do you think I'm great?" I asked with a grin.

"Guys who are brilliant, handsome, and talented are hard to come by," Alicia answered. "And you're two out of three, which is a rare accomplishment."

I came to a halt. "That was a joke, right?"

Alicia kept walking.

"Alicia!" I called after her. "Am I handsome or talented?"

A freshman who happened to be walking by when I said that stopped to give me a strange look.

"What?" I asked him, a bit more viciously than I'd meant to.

He shook his head quickly and started to walk away.

"Wait!" I shouted at him.

The freshman stopped, giving me a frightened look as if he thought I was going to hit him or something.

"You have a name?" I asked the boy.

"B-Ben," he stuttered.

"Well, Ben, can I ask you something?"

Ben nodded.

"Am I handsome?" I asked him. "Or am I talented?"

_***Macy***_

"Maybe I should just ask him," I sighed, staring longingly at Hayden.

"Ask him what?" Kevin asked. "'Hey, Hayden. Say, have you rescued any damsels in distress from drowning in the school swimming pool lately?'"

I shook my head. "Maybe you're right. I mean, I'll sound pretty stupid if it wasn't him."

Kevin shifted uncomfortably.

"But it's killing me not knowing who it was. Do you have any ideas?"

Kevin shook his head, concentrating on the floor, clutching the right pocket of his trousers.

I liked confiding in Kevin. It was strange. Before this whole guardian angel thing, I'd been too obsessed with JONAS to have a normal conversation with them. But now that I was preoccupied with finding whoever saved me, I could talk to Kevin like he was just another guy.

"You're such a good friend to listen to my problems like this," I told him. "Especially since I'm usually so…you know."

"I don't mind that you're usually…you know," Kevin replied.

"I'm glad. Kevin?"

"Yeah, Macy?"

I tore my eyes away from Hayden to look at the oldest member of JONAS. "What do you think of Hayden?"

"What do I think of Hayden? Well, you know. He's…you know."

"Be honest," I urged.

"I think that talking to Hayden for fifteen minutes is like watching a leaky faucet for three hours. Drip…drip…drip…"

I cringed. "Harsh."

"You said to be honest," Kevin pointed out.

"Well, you're wrong," I disagreed. "Hayden is fascinating. He's handsome. He's athletic. And he saved my life."

Kevin turned away so I couldn't read his expression. "What a guy."

**So, writing this chapter wasn't nearly as fun after writing chapter two with Kevin rescuing Macy from drowning. But I did get to write the start to some love triangle (okay, more like hexagon) goodness, so that was fun. Hope you had fun reading it. So what did you think? Love it? Hate it? Send me a review to let me know how I'm doing. Or just to let me know that people are reading this. Review, and I'll love you forever. And to those of you who have already been promised that I'll love you forever for reviewing 14 Reasons, review this chapter and I'll love you DOUBLE forever. Do the math. That's a very long time.**

**Next chapter: Here I Am, Juliet**


	4. Here I Am, Juliet

**As usual, I took forever writing this chapter. There were a few times when I had to push past my writer's block and just force creativity. It ain't easy, but contrary to popular belief, it can be done. So, this chapter is full of references to _Romeo and Juliet_. It's not necessary, but it might help you to read Act II, Scene II of the play. Or just read the whole thing, because it's one of my favorite plays ever.**

**By the way, the song in this chapter (Kevin's! Yay!) is my very favorite one that I wrote for this story.**

**Just to warn you, I didn't proofread very well, because I get bored reading my own writing right after I've written it, and I'm lazy. So I apologize for any mistakes.**

**I don't own JONAS. As for the many **_**Romeo and Juliet**_** references, credit goes to good old Bill Shakespeare.**

**How to Crush a Crush: The Easy-to-Use Manual on Losing a Stalker**

**Chapter 4: Here I Am, Juliet**

_***Macy***_

I had a moral dilemma.

I had a crush on the same boy that Stella—my _best friend_—also liked. And to complicate things further, said hunk had just saved me from a most horrible fate, which only made him about five times more attractive. Plus, he'd been watching me shamelessly for days, and when confronted about it, practically told me he liked me.

What was a girl to do?

Was I supposed to let my best friend go after the guy that I liked and was pretty sure liked me back? Obviously, that wasn't what I wanted to do. But was it the right thing to do?

Would it be wrong for me to go after Hayden? I tried to justify it in my head. It was like Charlotte said at swim practice: Stella couldn't just call dibs on every cute guy in the school. And besides, it was me Hayden was interested in. And I couldn't help that I liked him back. Right?

That was what I was trying to convince myself as I pulled my _Romeo and Juliet_ script from my locker. I felt as if I was carrying a fifty pound weight across my shoulders. I was dreading drama class. Sitting so close to Hayden. Listening to him breathe. Smelling that musky cologne.

Hm. That was strange.

Just as I thought about the way Hayden smelled, I swore I could smell his cologne. And not just imaginary smelling. For real smelling.

Then I heard a deep voice behind me.

"What light through yonder window breaks? It is the east, and Macy is the sun."

Before I could turn around, a hand appeared in front of me, holding a long-stemmed rose.

Romeo and Juliet: a pair of star-crossed lovers. A tragic tale of forbidden romance.

"What's in a name?" I asked, accepting the gift. "A rose, by any other name, would smell as sweet."

Mrs. Snart said that _Romeo and Juliet_ was the most romantic play of all time. Or something like that. I was pretty sure she was on to something, because when I turned around to see Hayden in front of me, I realized that forbidden love was hot. Way hot.

_***Nick***_

"I just don't get what you two have against the guy," I told my brothers, as we walked together to our lockers.

"I just don't like him," Joe replied. "He walks around like he's the hottest thing ever. Who does he think he is, Orlando Bloom?"

"You just don't like him because Stella likes him," I replied. I turned to Kevin. "I have no idea why you don't like him."

"I just don't," Kevin said, simply.

"Why not?" I asked. "You're Kevin. You like everybody."

"Who says I have to like everybody?" Kevin asked, crossing his arms.

"No one said you _have to_. I've just never seen you dislike someone so strongly."

Joe came to a halt in front of us, causing Kevin and me to run into his back.

"Why aren't we moving?" Kevin asked, tapping Joe on the shoulder.

"Isn't that Hayden?" Joe asked, pointing toward Macy's locker.

Indeed it was. The guy that Joe had been so jealous over Stella liking, was leaning over Stella's best friend, who was pressed up against her locker hugging a book to her chest and holding a long-stemmed red rose.

"They look…cozy," I commented.

"Is that a flower?" Kevin asked. "Did he give her a flower?"

"Wait a sec," Joe said, confused. "I thought Stella called dibs on him."

I shrugged. "Just because Stella likes him doesn't mean he likes her back."

Joe looked offended. "Why not? What's wrong with Stella?"

"It doesn't matter why Hayden likes Macy instead of Stella," I told him, giving him a shove so he would continue walking forward. "The important thing is, you don't have to feel threatened anymore."

"Who says I felt threatened?" Joe replied, as he and I continued toward our lockers.

"Please, Joe. Everyone knows that you were jealous of…" I stopped walking when I realized that our oldest brother was not walking with us. "Kevin?" I said, turning around. "You coming?"

It was clear that he was not, because Kevin was still staring at Macy and Hayden, his hands clenched into tight fists.

"I know you're the expert on jealousy, not me," I said to Joe. "But I think I know now why Kevin hates Hayden so much."

_***Kevin***_

"We're in for a treat today," Mrs. Snart announced, as the class took their seats. "Today we get to read act two, scene two of Romeo and Juliet. The Balcony Scene."

There were a few delighted squeals from some of the girls in the class, as well as a few groans from the guys. Hayden turned around in his seat to smile slyly at Macy, who giggled. I felt my stomach twist around itself like it'd been put through a cotton candy machine.

"Tessa Bartlett," Mrs. Snart said. "Why don't you read the part of Juliet for us?"

A cheerleader in the front row nodded.

"And for a Romeo, how about…" Mrs. Snart scanned the room, her eyes falling at last on Hayden. "Mr. Bradley."

Hayden snuck another peek at Macy before nodding at Mrs. Snart.

"Wonderful. Now, if the two of you will start reading from the beginning of act two, scene two."

Hayden nodded and began to read from his script. "_He jests at scars that never felt a wound. But, soft! What light through yonder window breaks_?" he read, as nearly every female in the class swooned. "_It is the east, and Macy is the sun_."

"'Juliet', Mr. Bradley," Mrs. Snart corrected him.

Hayden turned his head to look at Macy and smiled. "My mistake."

I saw Macy's ears go crimson, as she lowered her head shyly.

"Just keep reading," Mrs. Snart instructed.

Hayden continued reading Romeo's part. All the while, I watched Macy, who kept staring dreamily at Hayden. I could feel the jealousy welling up inside me. It wasn't fair. It should have been _me_ Macy was obsessing over. She was my biggest fan. That was how it was supposed to be. And _I _had been the one who saved her. Yet, there she sat, a row ahead of me and a row to the right, staring longingly at the wrong Romeo.

_See the way she lays her hand upon her cheek  
with that far-off look in her brown eyes  
that I wish could be for me.  
See the way she runs her fingers through her hair.  
I wish that I could do the same  
and I'm trying not to stare.  
If she only knew what I would give  
if I could be her man.  
To touch that hair.  
To brush that cheek.  
To be a glove upon that hand._

_Juliet, how could you know  
that you and I belong?  
I'm the one that you've been searching for.  
I've been here all along.  
you stand up on your balcony.  
If you would just look down below  
you'd see me waiting here for you  
and know that I'm your Romeo._

_What is that light that from yonder window breaks?  
It is the east, and she's the sun.  
She doesn't know how my heart aches.  
What is this fire I've never felt before?  
Only she can make me feel this way.  
She is all that I adore.  
Her smile lights up the morning sky  
like the sunrise in early June.  
She sheds the light.  
She fans the flame.  
She kills the envious moon._

Juliet, how could you know  
that you and I belong?  
I'm the one that you've been searching for.  
I've been here all along.  
You stand up on your balcony.  
If you would just look down below  
you'd see me waiting here for you  
and know that I'm your Romeo.

I felt a sudden jab in my side that woke me from my daydream.

"Ow!" I cried, sitting upright.

"Is there a problem, Kevin of…Mr. Lucas?" Mrs. Snart asked.

"No. No problem," I responded, looking around to see who had prodded me. My eyes fell on Macy, who was turned around in her seat.

"Sorry," she whispered. "I thought you were falling asleep."

"Carry on, Miss Bartlett," Mrs. Snart instructed, as Macy turned back around to face forward.

"_My ears have not yet drunk a hundred words of that tongue's utterance, yet I know the sound,_" Tessa Bartlett read. "_Art thou not Romeo and a Montegue_?"

"_Neither, fair saint, if either thee dislike_," Hayden replied.

Macy turned around again, a sappy grin on her face. "Isn't he good?" she whispered to me. "Hayden's a natural romantic."

_***Stella***_

"Stella, I need your help with something," Nick said, taking a seat beside me in the cafeteria.

"Not again, Nick," I moaned. "If you'd hang your jacket up by the collar instead of by the hood I wouldn't have to keep sewing it back on for you."

"What? No, that's not what I need your help with. Although the hood is starting to fall off again…"

I shook my head. "What do you need then?"

"It's about a girl," Nick began.

"Alicia Roberts?" I guessed. "You want to know whether she likes you?"

"How did you know?"

"Please, Nick. It's me you're talking to."

"Right," Nick replied. "So, what do you think? Does she?"

"It's hard to say," I replied, placing my straw into my milk carton. "Has she said anything to make you think she likes you?"

"Well, yesterday she said I was smart," Nick said. "And either handsome or talented, but I'm not sure which. Ben thinks I'm talented."

"Who's Ben?" I asked, confused.

Nick shook his head. "Nobody. So, does Alicia like me?"

"Honestly, Nick? I don't know."

Nick looked disappointed. "But aren't you supposed to know, like, everything about who likes who at this school?"

"I wish," I sighed, propping my elbows on the table. "Then I would know whether Hayden Bradley likes me."

Nick quickly tried to hide his face from me.

"What?" I asked, noting his strange behavior.

"Nothing," Nick replied, refusing to face me. "I didn't say anything."

"But you know something," I said, tugging on his shoulder so he would look at me. "About Hayden? Come on, Nick, spill it."

"Fine," Nick gave in. "This morning I saw Hayden giving a flower to…a girl."

I felt my cheeks growing hot with jealousy. "What girl?" I asked. "Do you know her? Was she pretty?"

"Just a girl," Nick replied.

"Was she pretty?" I repeated.

"Yeah, she was pretty," Nick replied.

I sighed. "I should have known he liked someone else. But when Macy told me she saw him looking at me, I thought…"

"You should just forget about Hayden," Nick cut me off. "He's just a guy."

"A really cute guy," I replied.

"Well, I happen to know a guy who thinks the world of you," Nick said, stealing a French fry off of my tray. "A guy who's funny, good-hearted, and reasonably attractive."

"Oh? And who would that be?"

Nick stood up and turned to leave.

"Nick!" I cried, as he started to walk away. "Who is it?"

Nick continued walking, but shouted over his shoulder, "You know who it is!"

My eyes fell on Joe, who was seated alone at a table nearby. Our eyes met momentarily, before I quickly turned around and went back to my lunch.

_***Joe***_

School was not the same when Stella refused to talk to me.

First, I walked around for half of the day with a severe cowlick because I didn't have Stella to point it out for me and then fix it with her extra-hold hair gel.

Then I ate lunch alone, because Kevin and Nick both had their minds on girls, and Stella wasn't speaking to me for reasons I still did not quite understand.

And then history class rolled around. Mr. Brown droned on and on about the American Civil War, and because I didn't have Stella to pass notes with the entire time, I was forced to actually pay attention. I had nothing to do but stare ahead in class and occasionally take notes when something seemed important. I was…learning.

It was horrible.

I needed to get Stella to talk to me again.

But how? Not only was she mad at me for avoiding her psychotic best friend and suspicious of my brothers and me concerning said best friend's "guardian angel", but she had a crush on a guy who was possibly cooler, stronger, and more attractive than I was and who, according to rumors, spoke at least four languages. How could I compete with that? I only spoke one language. Two if you counted Pig Latin. Two and a half if you counted what I'd learned during my two years of Spanish, although I'd barely retained any of it. All I could remember what how to ask for the bathroom, how to count to fourteen, and a song of very few words about a cockroach that can't walk because it's missing some feet. And while Spanish is called the language of love, I was quite certain that none of those things would impress Stella.

It was sad, really, that Stella was so infatuated with Hayden and so loyal to Macy. Seeing as Hayden was not terribly interested in Stella and Macy was acting a little less than loyal. They clearly liked each other. If Stella had seen the way those two had been flirting that morning...

Of course, she couldn't know that they liked each other. It would crush her. And then she'd have to come running to trusty old Joe and I'd have to patch things up and she'd realize that I was always there for her and that I was the only guy for her and that I was much cooler and more attractive than Hayden Bradley even though I wasn't as athletic and could only speak two and half languages if you counted Pig Latin and the Spanish cockroach song.

I tried to shake thoughts of Stella out of my head as I turned my attention back to Mr. Brown, who was still going on about the Civil War. It was probably healthier to focus on history than to let my mind wander. It tended to drift into dangerous waters.

School was not the same when Stella refused to talk to me.

_***Kevin***_

"Macy!" I called, approaching the petite girl at her locker. For the first time that day, I'd finally cornered her when she was alone. Stella was nowhere to be seen. My brothers were out of sight. And most importantly, Hayden wasn't around. No way could I tell her what I needed to tell her with Romeo hanging over her shoulder.

"Oh, hi Kevin. Didn't see you there," Macy greeted me as if I was just any other guy and not her idol who she'd worshipped for years.

I forced myself to push past the painful greeting and get right to the point. "Macy, can I talk to you about something?"

"Sure. Anything."

"It's about…" I searched my brain for the right way to phrase it. "It's about your guardian angel," is what I finally came up with.

Macy's face lit up. "It's Hayden! I know it is!"

I cringed. "About that…"

Macy sighed. "I know what you're thinking."

"You do?" I asked, surprised.

She nodded. "You're going to say that it's not right for me to obsess over this guardian angel thing."

I shrugged. "Well, yeah. I guess. But…"

"But Stella's a big girl. I think she'll understand."

Now I was confused. "What? Who said anything about Stella?"

"You did," Macy responded.

"I did?"

"I know it's probably wrong for me to go after a guy that Stella likes," Macy continued. "But I can't help that I like him too. And I'm pretty sure he likes me. Plus, he saved my life. How could I not like him?"

"Wait a minute," I said. This conversation was not going as I'd planned. "You don't know that he's the one who saved you."

"But I do," Macy corrected me. "Hayden and I have a real connection. It's like…telepathy."

I shook my head, confused. "Wait a minute, when did we start talking about telephone connections?"

"Kevin," Macy said. "If a person likes a friend, don't you think it's only right that that person let the friend know how they feel?"

Finally, this conversation was going in the direction I wanted it to. I nodded. "Definitely."

Macy smiled. "Then I have to tell Hayden that I like him."

Whoa. U-turn. This was not the direction I was going for. "Wait a second…"

"Thanks for the talk, Kevin," Macy said, putting a hand on my shoulder. "Now I'm off to go get my guardian angel."

"Wait a minute!" I called after her, as she started to walk away. "What if he's not your guardian angel?"

"He is," Macy assured me. "Thanks for telling me to go for it, Kev."

I stared in wonder as she wandered away. Was that really what I'd told her? Because it definitely wasn't what I'd meant to tell her.

_***Macy***_

I took a deep breath as I approached Hayden. As usual, he was engulfed in sweaty, Neanderthal basketball robots, but I was tired of waiting for the opportune moment to talk to him. I was beginning to doubt that it would ever come. So I stood up straight, squared my shoulders, and marched into the crowd.

"Hayden, can we talk?"

Immediately, all of his basketball buddies ceased their conversations and turned to look at me.

Hayden nodded. "Sure."

"Alone," I specified, regretting seconds later how cliché I'd sounded.

The basketball robots _oohed_ and snickered at Hayden as he stepped around one of his friends towards me. Seizing me by the arm, he pulled me a safe distance away from the team.

"What's up?" he asked.

After swallowing hard, I decided to get right to the point. "I like you."

Apparently we hadn't gone far enough away from the basketball robots, because they all started cheering and whistling at Hayden.

Somehow, he managed to ignore his friends. "I like you too," he said simply.

I wasn't sure how to react. I hadn't expected it to be that simple.

"Oh. Well, that was easy," I commented. After a moment of silence, I added, "Now what?"

Hayden smiled. "I think next I'm supposed to take you on a date."

I grinned. "That sounds nice." Suddenly, reality set in and my smile slipped away. "But I can't go out with you."

Hayden frowned. "Whoa. Anticlimactic. That's not your next line."

I sighed. "Unfortunately, Hayden, this isn't a play."

"Then what's with the drama?" Hayden replied.

"The thing is," I rubbed the back of my neck, awkwardly, "my best friend likes you too."

"Stella?"

I nodded. "And, well…she's my best friend."

"So she should understand. She should be able to forgive and forget."

"She shouldn't have to."

"And you shouldn't have to make your decisions based on how Stella feels. Isn't she going out with that JONAS guy, anyways?"

"Not exactly."

"But they like each other?"

"Obviously."

"So what's the problem?"

I sighed. Forbidden love. "It's like you're...off limits."

"Off limits?" Hayden repeated, incredulously. "I'm just a person."

I shook my head. "No, you're Hayden. Captain of the basketball team and most popular guy at Horace Mantis Academy."

Hayden took my hand. "Neither, fair saint, if either thee dislike."

If I was gonna resist this guy, he was gonna have to stop quoting Shakespeare.

I thought about pulling my hand away, but decided against it. "I just have one question," I said.

"Shoot."

"Are you the one who saved me from drowning on Wednesday afternoon?"

_***Nick***_

"So if angles A and B are congruent, then lines AC and BC are the same length?"

I nodded. "Exactly."

"So how do I find out the perimeter of the semi-circle?"

"All you have to do find the length of line AB to find the diameter and divide by two to find the…" I saw Alicia's eyes start to gloss over. "Why don't we talk about something else for a while?"

Alicia looked up at me. "Got anything in mind?"

I took a deep breath. "Actually, I do."

She smiled. "Go ahead."

"I wanted to talk about…us."

"You and me?"

"Yeah."

Alicia looked…nervous? Frightened? Sick? I wasn't sure.

I wiped my clammy hands on my knees before continuing. "Alicia, I was wondering if… I think that you and I… What I mean to say is…"

"Nick, you have to help me!"

Alicia whipped her head around to see who was calling for me. She looked as displeased as I was to see Joe running up to our secluded library table. Or was she relieved? I couldn't be sure.

"Joe, what are you doing here?" I asked, annoyed.

"I need your help," he panted. "I want to impress a girl."

"Stella?" Alicia guessed.

Joe looked concerned. "Does everyone know I like her?"

"Pretty much," Alicia replied.

"What do you want me to do?" I asked, urging him to get to the point.

"I need you to teach me another language."

I rolled my eyes. "Joe, I don't know another language."

Joe cocked his head to the side. "You don't?"

I shook my head.

"You don't speak Spanish?"

I shook my head again.

"Russian?"

"No."

"Portuguese?"

"Look, Joe, even if I did know another language—which I don't, so you can stop listing languages—I wouldn't be able to teach it to you during study hall."

Joe looked disappointed. "Aren't you supposed to be like a genius?"

"Which is why he's helping me with my geometry," Alicia said.

"So, as you can see, I'm busy right now."

Joe looked from me to Alicia, finally understanding what he was interrupting. "Oh. _Oh_. I'll just leave you two alone then."

But before he had the chance to turn and walk away, we had another interruption.

"Nick, I need to talk to you!" Kevin cried, running up behind Joe.

"Kevin, I'm in the middle of something," I replied.

"This is important," Kevin said. "It's about…" he eyed Alicia and lowered his voice. "M-A-C-Y."

"Um, I can hear you," Alicia informed him. "And I can spell."

"That's right, Kev," Joe put in. "It's math she sucks at."

"Hey!" Alicia cried.

I glared from one brother to the other. "Joe, shut up. Kevin, what do you want?"

"I have to tell her," Kevin announced.

"Tell who what?" Joe asked.

"Macy," Kevin replied. "You know how I am about lying. It's killing me. Plus…"

"What?" Joe asked. "Why?"

"You can't!" I told him. "She finally acting normal around us."

"I know that," Kevin said. "But I don't want her to be normal. I want her to be _her_, because..."

"You like her," I finished, knowingly.

"Shh!" Kevin hissed. "Don't say it out loud!"

"Look, Kev, can we talk about this later? I was just talking to Alicia about…"

"Later might be too late!" Kevin interrupted me. "I need to tell Macy the truth and I need to tell her now!"

Alicia looked confused. "If you're all gonna be talking about whatever it is you're talking about while Nick and I are studying, could someone at least fill me in here?"

I opened my mouth to speak, but once again, I was interrupted. This time it was Stella. She raced into the library and took a seat beside me.

"Nick, remember how I gave you advice today at lunch?"

"If I remember correctly," I replied, "I asked you for advice and we ended up talking about you."

"Right," Stella said, clearly not hearing what I'd just said and showing no sign of caring. "Well, I need to you return the favor."

"You need boy advice?" I asked, trying to keep the annoyance out of my voice.

"I need your advice..." Stella began.

"I can leave if you want," Joe offered, grinning, "if you want to talk about me."

"...about Hayden," Stella finished.

Joe looked deflated. "What?"

"Now, I know you said he likes some other girl, but I was thinking maybe I still have a chance. I mean, Macy did say she saw him staring at me. And besides, how do we know this mystery girl is interested in him?"

"Trust me," Kevin said dryly. "She interested in him."

Stella looked desperate. "But maybe…"

"Stella!" Joe cut her off. "He likes someone else. Get over it."

Stella glared at Joe. "Who asked you?"

"Guys!" I cried. "Can you not see that I'm busy here? I don't have time to get into your personal lives."

Joe, Kevin, and Stella all looked at me, wide-eyed.

"But she…" Joe said, pointing at Stella. His voice trailed off.

"But Hayden…" Stella said, her voice, too, trailing off.

"But Macy…" Kevin said when he was cut off by somebody else entering the library.

"Hey guys," Macy greeted us, walking hand-in-hand with Hayden Bradley. "Did I just hear my name?"

The five of us stared in awe at the apparent couple before us.

"Macy," Stella said, looking concerned. "What's going on?"

Macy looked guiltily at Hayden, then back at Stella. "Stella," she said softly, "there's something I need to tell you."

Stella crossed her arms. "Clearly."

"Well, I just asked Hayden," Macy said, speaking to all of us, "if he was the one who saved me. And he said yes. He's my guardian angel."

**Please review and tell me what you thought! Especially about the song (or any of the songs in this story). I'd really appreciate some feedback.**

**Next Chapter: Read Between the Lines**


	5. Read Between the Lines

**Prepare yourself for a long and apologetic author's note.**

**I'm sooooooooooooooooo sorry this chapter took so long. But I'm more sorry about why it took so long: I have too many TV obsessions that need fed. It's ridiculous. I spent the last two or three weeks making vids of Holly J and Declan from Degrassi. Besides that, I've been reading speculations on what will happen in the finales of Total Drama Action and Monk (Don't diiiieeee Adrian!), watching Community religiously, awaiting new episodes from the third season of H2O (How could they air a new ep every day for two weeks and then just stop? How?), and watching major hints of both major ships on iCarly (team Seddie!). In the past two days, I watched all of the episodes that have aired so far of Iron Man: Armored Adventures, although I have no idea why (I'll admit, I enjoyed it far too much). And I watched the pilot of Big Time Rush, just to see if it was going to be a Nickelodeon version of JONAS (It wasn't). It wasn't great, but Logan is super cute. Plus, I need to catch up on Cold Case, because I'm always busy when the new episodes air. Clearly, my problem here is that I enjoy too wide a variety of TV shows. I need to narrow down my obsessions. **

**So now that you've gotten that frightening glimpse into my mind, let me introduce this chapter.**

**The song in this chapter is Joe's, and I feel I should warn you of something ahead of time. Ever since I wrote the ridiculous Stella song for 14 Reasons Why Not, I've had it in my head that Joe's songs don't actually have to be good. I can't write from Joe's point of view without being completely cheesy. I considered rewriting it, but I think I've made you wait for this chapter long enough. Plus, I don't know, maybe the cheesiness of Joe's songs fit the Joella relationship. I don't know. Tell me what you think.**

**And now I feel I need to apologize once more. To those of you who initially liked Hayden and had high expectations for his character, I'm sorry. I felt bad when people commented saying that they liked Hayden since I'd been planning to reveal that he was evil. I guess people expected him to be like Justin from 14 Reasons Why Not. But Hayden's more like the Anti-Justin (It just occurred to me as I typed that that somewhere in 14 Reasons, I referred to Justin as the Anti-Kevin). People initially wanted to hate Justin in 14 Reasons, and people initially seemed to like Hayden in this fic. Weird.**

**Speaking of Hayden, I keep forgetting to thank the two readers who named him. I asked for help in naming him while posting 14 Reasons Why Not, and Ally117 and ActingBlonde both suggested Hayden. So thanks, you two!**

**I know I said "once more" when I gave my last apology, but I have one more. I'm sorry that this author's note is so long. I'm sure half of the people reading this chap just skipped right over the author's note. Why weren't you smart like those people? Read and review!**

**I don't own JONAS or Romeo and Juliet.**

**How to Crush a Crush: The Easy-to-Use Manual on Losing a Stalker**

**Chapter 5: Read Between the Lines**

_***Stella***_

School was out for the weekend, and I sat in the JONAS recording studio with Joe, venting. It had only been about half an hour since The Betrayal, and I was still fuming.

"I don't get it. I just don't get it. How could Macy do this to me? She's my best friend. She knew I liked him."

Joe shrugged. "Stells, you can't just call dibs on guys. It doesn't work that way. We do get some say in what happens to us."

I glared at him. "You're supposed to be taking my side, Joe."

Joe raised his eyebrows. "Taking your side? Up until about thirty minutes ago, you weren't even talking to me. For reasons I still cannot understand. Besides, I have my own mind, you know. I can form my own opinions."

"I don't need your opinion right now. I need your support."

"Fine. Macy's a scumbag, okay? Just remember, she is your best friend. And I'm sure _she's_ really looking for _your _support right now."

As much as I wanted to be mad at Macy, I knew Joe was right. I sighed. "I know. I mean, I know it isn't really Macy's fault. How can she help but like him? He rescued her from drowning." I thought I saw Joe shift uncomfortably at that remark. "He's like her knight in shining armor. It's just that…I kind of thought Hayden liked me. It made me feel…special. You know?"

Joe nodded. "I know the feeling."

"And the fact that he likes my best friend…It's a slap in the face."

"I get that. It sucks when the person you like likes someone else." Joe took a seat beside me and placed a comforting arm over my shoulder, sending a tingling current down my spine. "But for what it's worth, I think Hayden has to be crazy not to be crazy about you. Even if it's in favor of someone as cool as Macy."

I felt my cheeks grow hot.

"Is it getting warm in here?" I asked.

Joe licked his lips. "Now that you mention it, it is getting kinda hot." He started to stand up. "I'll turn up the AC…"

Without thinking, I seized his arm and pulled him back down. "That's okay!" I cried, pulling his arm back over my shoulder. "I mean…I like it hot...the room, I mean."

Joe swallowed hard. "Right. Yeah. I knew what you meant."

I felt my palms grow sweaty. I had the feeling that Joe knew _exactly_ what I meant.

_***Nick***_

"Look, Kev, maybe it's for the best," I said. "I mean, look at the bright side…"

"What would that be?" he interrupted me. "Now that Macy has a boyfriend, she'll be off our backs permanently?"

I shrugged. "Well…yeah."

"Well guess what, Nick. This isn't about you. Or me. It's about Macy and the fact that she's dating a guy who's lying to her."

I didn't know how to respond.

"I'm not stupid, Nick," Kevin said, his voice low and somewhat melancholy. "I may not know a lot, but I know what's important. People's feelings, Nick—those are important. And Macy…"

"Is important to you," I finished. "You don't think I know that? Trust me, I feel…" I caught a glimpse of the hurt in my brother's eyes. "…almost as horrible as you do."

Kevin sighed. "You know the worst part?"

"What's the worst part?"

"I can't punch this guy's teeth in."

"Because he's a jock who works out every weekend while you're eating doughnuts and watching Saturday morning cartoons?"

Kevin glared at me. I cringed.

"Why don't you just tell me why," I suggested.

Kevin sighed. "Because I'm as bad as he is."

"What?" I cried, shaking my head. "Come on, Kev. This dirtbag took advantage of Macy's trusting nature by lying to her in order to make her behave toward him the way he wanted her to."

"Well that was a lot of big words," my brother replied. "But whatever you just said sounded a lot like what we did."

"What? No! We just…" I hung my head.

"Did what, Nick?"

"Took advantage of Macy's trusting nature by lying to her in order to make her behave toward us the way we wanted her to," I mumbled.

"You see?"

"When did you suddenly become the smart one?"

Kevin shrugged. "I think around the same time I became our biggest fan's biggest fan."

I sighed. "I'm sorry, Kevin. You know, you were right all along. You shouldn't blame yourself. You never wanted to lie to Macy."

"But I did."

"Just relax. Stop being so hard on yourself." I patted my oldest brother on the back. "These things always have a way of working themselves out…right after they get worse."

Kevin sighed, then looked around the table. "Hey, where are Stella and Joe?"

_***Macy***_

"Do you think Stella's mad at me?"

"Naw." Hayden shook his head. "No."

I frowned. "Then why did she shout, 'Some best friend you are!', throw her super-sacred best friend forever hair barrette at me, and storm away dragging Joe with her even though she was ignoring him because he was ignoring me?"

"I'm not even gonna pretend I understood that sentence."

I ran my hands through my hair. "Stella's never gonna forgive me. I'm gonna turn back into that style illiterate tomboy with no female friends."

"Relax," Hayden replied, standing behind me and rubbing my shoulders. "This will all blow over soon enough. Stella will get over this."

"You sure about that?" I asked, shaking him off of me. I hated when people rubbed my shoulders, but I could hardly expect Hayden to know that.

"I'm positive," Hayden reassured me. "In the meantime, why don't you accompany me to the gym so I can show off my new girlfriend to all of my basketball buddies?"

"Just what I've always wanted," I retorted, sarcastically. "To be arm candy to school basketball star."

Hayden took my hand and pulled me to my feet. "That's the spirit."

_***Joe***_

"Well, Stella's not mad at Macy anymore," I announced, joining my brothers in the kitchen. "Or me, for that matter. Although she probably will be when he inevitably discovers that we lied to Macy about her 'guardian angel'. Right now she believes that Hayden saved Macy's life."

Kevin moaned as if in pain.

"That's nice, Joe," Nick replied. "But how about not mentioning M-A-C-Y around K-E-V-I-N for a while."

Kevin glared at Nick. "I know how to spell my own name. What do you take me for? An idiot?"

Nick shrugged. "I was hoping you were too distressed to try to sound it out."

"Guys," I said, sitting down. "I think Stella and I just had, like, a moment. It's like thanks to this Hayden thing, we're really getting somewhere."

"Great, Joe," Nick replied. "That's just great. I'm glad you chose this moment to brag about this enormous step in your relationship. Meanwhile, Kevin just lost his dream girl to a guy who's lying to her and every time I get close to getting anywhere with Alicia, you show up and ruin it."

"What? Sorry? All I heard was 'enormous step…blah, blah, blah…dream girl…blah, blah, blah…I'm a buzz kill.'"

Nick rolled his eyes. "Okay then. I'll make this short and sweet: Kevin's depressed. Stop being so happy."

I took a look at my older brother and felt a pang of guilt. "You're right. I'm sorry. I should be there for my brother in his time of need."

Kevin groaned. "It's not my 'time of need', okay, guys. You don't have to be depressed just because I am."

I grinned. "Well, in that case…Stella's coming over later to watch a movie. What do you think we should watch? Romance or horror? See, if we watch a horror movie, I can comfort her when she gets scared. But then again, you can never go wrong with _The Notebook_…"

Nick sighed. "Great. I've got a depressed Kevin and a love drunk Joe. This is going to be a long weekend."

_***Nick***_

"Hey Nick," Alicia greeted me on Monday morning. "How was your weekend?"

"Long."

Alicia smiled sympathetically. "Let me guess. One brother spent the weekend drowning his sorrows in canned whipped cream and Cheez Whiz while the other floated around the firehouse for three days singing Air Supply songs?"

I stared at her, mystified. "How did you know that?"

"I ran into Kevin and Joe already this morning. Joe was still humming _Two Less Lonely People in the World_, and Kevin…clearly hasn't changed his shirt in a while."

"Let's just say, after that weekend, I am relieved to be out of the house."

"I have three older brothers. I know how you feel."

I fell into step with Alicia as we walked together toward English class. "So," I said. "Study sesh at lunch?"

Alicia smiled. "Sounds great. I could really use your help on some of the new proofs…"

Alicia was interrupted by our geometry teacher, Mr. Preston, who had abruptly stepped out of his classroom as we were passing and intercepted her.

"Ms. Roberts!" he cried, stepping in front of her.

I took a few steps without her before backtracking so I was once again standing by her side.

"Hey, Mr. P," Alicia greeted the teacher.

"There's my star pupil," Mr. Preston replied. "I've been meaning to talk to you, Alicia. A couple more students have talked to me about needing tutoring, so if you have the time, I was hoping maybe you could…"

"Wait a sec," I interrupted him, looking at Alicia. "Star pupil? You're…tutoring students in geometry?"

Mr. Preston placed a proud hand on his star pupil's shoulder. "I've never had a student who could so easily grasp numbers and shapes."

Alicia blushed, refusing to make eye contact with me. "I'm not…_that_ good."

Mr. Preston grinned. "She's modest too. So, Ms. Roberts, about those students…"

"Absolutely," Alicia replied. "Give them my number."

He patted her on the back. "You're a life saver." Without another word, he ducked back into his classroom.

Alicia stared at her feet as we continued toward English. I couldn't help but smile.

"So…you didn't really need my help in geometry."

Alicia's ears went as crimson as her hair. "Not exactly…"

I nudged her shoulder with my own. "That could only mean that you were using it as an excuse. And excuse to spend time with me?"

"Maybe," Alicia mumbled.

"I'm not sure how to react to this new information."

"You could just forget you ever found out."

"It's pretty clear that you don't really need my help with those new proofs…"

"I know, Nick. Look, I'm sorry I lied. It's just…"

"…but would consider eating lunch with me today anyways? I'm sure we could find some non-math-related things to talk about."

She looked up at me, wide-eyed. "Really?"

"Actually, I'm having some trouble in my creative writing class. We have to write these poems, and you know, I'm just no good at rhyming, or rhythm, or coming up with moody lyrics. So if you could help me with that…"

Alicia grinned. "Shut up," she said, punching me on the arm.

I smiled and rubbed my arm. "I'll take that as a 'yes'."

_***Kevin***_

The worst thing about Monday was that it was the day I discovered that Hayden was a big fan of public displays of affection. When he wasn't kissing Macy on the cheek, he was squeezing her shoulders, or rubbing his palm against the small of her back or on other places on her body where I felt his hands did not belong. It was like he wanted every guy in the school to know that Macy was _his_ girlfriend. He paraded her around like she was some prize terrier in one of those cheesy tiny dog shows.

The best thing about Monday was that it was the day discovered that Macy was not a big fan of public displays of affection. When his hands got to roaming, she'd push them away. When he tried to hug her, she'd shake him off. When he'd kiss her on the cheek, she'd shove him away and hiss, "Hayden, we're in _school_." And she certainly did not enjoy being his accessory. If there was one thing I knew about Macy Misa, it was that she took pride in her individuality. She was no one's purse dog.

And yet despite all this, she was still with this sleaze ball. The guy who lied to her so that he could… Who knew what the creep's intentions were? But I had that feeling that he hadn't taken credit for saving her life so he could sit by her side and whisper lines of Shakespeare into her ear all day.

Between third and fourth periods, I finally found Macy alone in the hallway. I'd been waiting all morning to talk to her without Hayden around.

"Hey, Macy!" I greeted her, approaching her at her locker.

Macy smiled at me. "Hi, Kevin." She made a slightly disgusted face once she'd gotten a good look at me. "Nice shirt."

I crossed my arms over my chest, embarrassed. "Yeah, I might have gotten a little spray cheese on it...and some other stuff."

"Right. So, how was your weekend?"

"Oh, you know. Good. Saturday morning cartoons and then a _Little House on the Prairie_ marathon on _Hallmark_."

"Is that so?" Macy responded with a grin. "So, how's life in Walnut Grove?"

I frowned. "Not so good. Everyone keeps calling Laura a little girl, even though she wants Almonzo to see her as a woman. And Harriet Oleson gave Nellie a restaurant as a graduation gift so she can bag herself a husband, and they've got their sights set on Almonzo."

Macy laughed. "I've seen that one, I think. With the cayenne pepper and the mud fight?"

I nodded. "And Pa socking Manly in the face."

Macy shook her head, sadly. "Poor Manly. Well, you should tell me next time there's a _Little House_ marathon on. We can watch it together."

I smiled. "Really?"

She nodded. "Totally. It would be fun."

"You're right. So, how was your weekend?"

Macy smiled. "It was fun. Hayden and I watched some college basketball on T.V. Then Hayden and I saw a movie. Then I went to the arcade and played some foosball. With Hayden."

I faked a smile. "Sounds fun."

Macy's eyes fell on something behind me. "Oh, there's Hayden. Gotta go."

I watched sadly as the girl of my dreams ran off to catch up with the guy of her dreams. Her guardian angel with the sunken-in cheeks, who had rescued her from drowning.

_***Nick***_

Alicia held her sides in pain as she tried to calm down her laughter. "Really?"

I nodded, laughing with her. "It's true."

She finally caught her breath. "And how did he manage to get all fourteen tater tots into such a tight space?"

I shrugged. "It turns out, tater tots aren't terribly dense."

"And, um, _why_ would he want to do such a thing?"

"You never really know with Frankie."

Alicia laughed. "That reminds me of the time I went on a picnic with my family, and my brother Todd crammed all of our cottage cheese into the hollow of a tree."

"Because he doesn't like cottage cheese?"

"Because he was mad that my mom forgot the potato salad!"

"Well that sounds logical. This was when you all were little?"

She shook her head. "It was last year."

I laughed. "Okay, you win. Your brothers are crazier than mine."

"So," Alicia said when our laughter had died down. "When are you gonna ask me out?"

This caught me by surprise. "What?"

"You were obviously trying to ask me out on Friday, before Joe interrupted you," Alicia said. "And last Wednesday, when Kevin walked in all lopsided and soaking wet, I'm pretty sure you were trying to kiss me."

I felt my cheeks grow hot. "I knew you knew that!"

"So it's only appropriate that you ask me out properly, now that all of that tutoring nonsense is behind us."

I raised an eyebrow in surprise.

Alicia crossed her arms, grinning. "Well?"

I coughed. "Ur…Alicia. Do you want to…get dinner with me? Tomorrow night?"

Alicia's grin grew wider, as she propped her elbows up on the table, resting her chin in her hands. "Gee, Nick, I don't know…"

My mouth fell open. "Huh?"

She sighed. "I guess I can fit it into my schedule."

I shook my head, my mouth involuntarily breaking into a smile. "Alicia Roberts, you are not turning out at all like l expected."

_***Joe***_

"Joe!"

I stopped dead in my tracks in front of my American History classroom when I head Stella's voice calling my name. I turned around and saw the blonde girl running my way.

"Hey Stells," I greeted her.

"I'm glad I finally caught you," she said, as the two of us walked into the classroom together.

"Yeah? Why?"

"I've been wanting to tell you something all day," she said, a sense of urgency in her voice.

I grinned. "Yeah? And what would that be?"

"Okay, quiet down everyone," Mr. Brown called out to the class. "Take your seats, class."

I sighed in disappointment as I took the seat directly in front of Stella's.

"Now, let's get right down to business," Mr. Brown said, his monotone voice already lulling half the class to sleep. "Who can tell me which state was the first to secede from the Union?"

He looked pleased when some of the more astute students in the front row raised their hands. As was his habit, he ignored those students and called on one of the half-asleep students in the back row.

"Mr. Kirk? Do you know the answer."

I turned around in my seat to look at the guy who'd been called on. It was Talon Kirk, a small, lightning fast member of the Horace Mantis tennis team who was known for having enough energy for three tennis players but not being all there intelligence-wise.

A few students snickered as Talon stared back at Mr. Brown with a blank expression on his face. Talon looked around the class before offering a guess. "September 4?"

This received a few more laughs from the class.

"Did you even hear the question, Mr. Kirk?" Mr. Brown asked.

"I heard…parts of it," Talon mumbled.

"What was the first state to secede from the Union?"

"Oh, that's easy," Talon responded. "Montana."

Mr. Brown's face fell. "Montana was not yet a state in 1861. The year that _South Carolina_ became the first state to secede from the Union."

He turned around to write _South Carolina_ across the board in gigantic letters. As soon as he was turned around, I felt something sharp stab me in the back. I turned around to find that it was the corner of a folded up sheet of paper, which Stella was trying to pass to me. Smiling, I took the note from her and turned back around. But as soon as I tried to unfold the note, Mr. Brown was once again facing the class.

"Now Mr. Kirk, can you tell me the name of the declaration that South Carolina adopted in December of 1960, justifying their secession?"

"Oh, that's easy," Talon responded. A few students snickered. "On December 24, 1960, South Carolina adopted the Declaration of the Immediate Causes Which Induce and Justify the Secession of South Carolina from the Federal Union'."

The class went silent. Mr. Brown stared at Talon, wide-eyed.

"What?" Talon asked, defensively. "I know things."

Mr. Brown looked concerned. "How did you know the name of the first Confederate state's declaration of independence, but not remember which state was the first to secede?"

"Well, you can't expect me to know everything."

I found my foot tapping against my will as I waited for Mr. Brown to turn back to the board so that I could read Stella's note. She'd told me that she had something to tell me. Something she'd been waiting all day to tell me.

"Mr. Kirk," Mr. Brown said. "The name of the state is in the name of the declaration. 'The Secession of _South Carolina_'. How could you not catch that?"

Talon shrugged. "What am I? A genius?"

The class laughed once again. I groaned. When was he going to turn back to the board? I needed to read that note!

_Wish Mr. Brown would turn around for just a minute.  
The girl of my dreams just passed me a note.  
Wish I could open it up to see what's written in it.  
All I can do is dream of what I hope she wrote._

_Maybe she said:  
Joe it's always been me and you.  
I want you to feel the same way too.  
You need to know what's really on my mind.  
You own every little piece of my heart.  
I never want to be apart.  
I've tried to tell you this a million times.  
It's time you learned to read between the lines._

_Wish Mr. Brown would turn around for just a second,  
so I can read this note without being scolded.  
My hands shake in my lap as this note beckons,  
from my desk, begging to be unfolded._

_Maybe she said:  
Joe please meet me after school.  
You and I can bend all the rules.  
Stay out until we both lose track of time.  
We'll dance out by the lake all night  
and kiss under the pale moonlight.  
I won't stop until I've made you mine.  
It's time you learned to read between the lines._

_Now Mr. Brown has turned around.  
It's time to find out what she said.  
As I unfold the note, my heart begins to pound,  
and everything inside me fills with dread._

I hurried to unfold the note as Mr. Brown wrote something about Georgia on the board. I held my breath as I read what Stella had written.

_Joe,_

_You have a horrible stain on your shirt. It's been bugging me all day. Meet me after class, and I'll take care of it._

_Love,  
Stella_

_***Stella***_

"There you go," I said, giving Joe's now stain-free shirt one last pat. "Good as new."

"Thanks, Stella," Joe said, flatly.

"Don't mention it. What are friends for?"

"Friends," Joe repeated. "Whoopee."

I eyed Joe, concerned. "Is something wrong?"

"Wrong? Why would you think something's wrong?"

At that moment, I spotted Macy and Hayden down the hall, holding hands and laughing about something. "Speaking of wrong…"

Joe groaned. "You're not still obsessing over those two, are you?"

"Obsessing?" I repeated. "Psh…no."

"Stells, you need to get over this. Hayden and Macy are going out now, and there's nothing you or Kevin can do about it."

"I know that. It's just…wait, Kevin? What does Kevin have to do with this?"

Joe rolled his eyes. "Dude's more miserable than you are over this. Turns out he has a thing for Macy."

My jaw dropped. "Kevin likes Macy? How could I miss that?"

"I think you were a little busy being mad at me for no reason and obsessing over pretty boy over there."

"Joe, do you realize how perfect this is?"

"What's perfect?"

"Kevin is part of JONAS. Macy is JONAS's number one fan."

"_Was_ JONAS's number one fan. But she's a little preoccupied now."

"But what if she became preoccupied with Kevin instead? That would leave Hayden free to…"

"Stella!" Joe cut me off. "Do you realize how wrong that is?"

I hung my head. "Yes."

"What is with you and this guy? Do you even know him?"

I was taken aback. "Of course I know…"

"Have you ever even spoken to him?"

"I…"

"You haven't," Joe cut me off. "And you don't know him. If you did, you wouldn't want to be with him."

"That's a little harsh," I replied. "You don't know him either."

"I know enough," Joe shot back. "You, on the other hand, only know that he has nice hair and dimples. This guy isn't right for you Stella. And you're plotting to steal him away from your best friend."

"I wasn't _plotting_ anything, Joe," I defended myself. "And who are you to say who is or isn't right for me?"

Joe looked hurt. "You really don't know?"

I swallowed hard. "Know what?"

"That the right guy has been right in front of you your entire life."

I licked my suddenly dry lips. "You mean…"

"Read between the lines, Stella."

Without another word, Joe turned and began to walk away.

"Joe, wait!" I called after him.

He stopped walking, but didn't turn around.

"You're not without fault here, you know," I said, starting to walk toward him. "Heaven knows I've watched you chase girl after girl. And all the while, I stood there waiting for you. Remember when you fought with your brothers over that pizza girl? You didn't even know her last name."

"Okay, so we're both the problem here." Joe turned to face me. "How do we fix it?"

"I think there's only one thing we can do about this," I replied.

And without another word, I stepped forward and smashed my lips against his.

_***Macy***_

"So Stella apologized to you for being mad at you and calling you a traitor?" Alicia asked.

"And I apologized to her for…you know. Stealing her guy," I replied. "Not that she's upset about it anymore. Now that she and Joe are finally together."

"It's about time," Nick said, shaking his head.

"Tell me about it," Kevin said.

I was free period, and the four of us were sitting in the library. We all had homework in front of us, but only Alicia was working on hers. I was impressed by her multi-tasking skills. I'd never seen someone who could gossip and do homework at the same time.

"So Stella really lunged at him in the middle of the hallway?" Alicia asked.

"Saw it with my own two eyes," I answered. "One minute they were arguing about something, and the next minute they were making out by some poor freshman's locker and Mrs. Snart had to break them apart."

Kevin made a face. "Well that sounds…"

"Nauseating?" I filled in.

Kevin nodded. "Don't get me wrong. It's great that Stella and Joe are finally together. But the whole PDA thing…"

"I know what you mean," I told him. "It's embarrassing."

Alicia suddenly closed her hefty text book and stood up. "Finished with my biology," she announced. "Nick, walk with me to my locker?"

Nick promptly stood up and accepted the hand she was holding out toward him.

Kevin watched them walk away until they were out of sight, then turned back to face me. "Looks like we're alone now. I have the feeling they won't be coming back."

I laughed. "There must be something in the air around here."

Kevin rolled his eyes. "Tell me about it. People are just falling in love all over the place." He said this the way one might say, "People are dropping rotting Halloween pumpkins all over the place."

"Kevin?" I said, concerned. "Are you okay?"

He nodded. "Sure."

"Because you don't sound okay."

"I'm fine," he assured me.

"Okay," I said, still not sure. "You never know with some people. Not Hayden, though. He wears his emotions on his sleeves."

Kevin made another disgusted face.

"What's wrong now?" I asked.

"Could we not talk about Hayden?"

"Um…okay. Are you sure nothing's wrong?"

"Positive," he replied.

I didn't believe him, but I thought it would be best to just drop it. "Alrighty then. Have you read the next act of _Romeo and Juliet_ yet?"

"Most of it, but I'm not sure I really understood it. Why was Romeo banished? Did he kill Mercutio?"

I shook my head. "Tybalt killed Mercutio. Romeo killed Tybalt."

"Why is everyone killing everyone? I thought this was supposed to be a romance play."

"Kevin, _Romeo and Juliet_ is one of the most famous tragedies ever written."

"Tragedy?" Kevin repeated. "As in, like, sad ending?"

I couldn't believe this. "You've never heard how _Romeo and Juliet_ ends?"

Kevin looked concerned. "How does it end?"

"Everyone dies."

"Everyone?" Kevin asked in disbelief. "Does Verona get hit by an atomic bomb or something?"

"No, Kevin," I said, shaking my head. "No."

"Well then, what happens?"

"Well first Juliet fakes her own death, but Romeo thinks she's really dead. Then he gets some poison and visits her tomb, where he runs into Paris. So he stabs Paris, and…"

"Maybe this would make more sense if I just read the play," Kevin interrupted me. "Although it would help if it was actually written in English…"

"Would it help if I walked you through it?" I offered, pulling my copy of _Romeo and Juliet_ out of my backpack.

Kevin smiled. "Would you?"

I moved from my seat across from him to a seat beside him. "Where did you leave off?"

"Um, act one. I think scene five."

I flipped my book open to the scene. "Okay, this is when Romeo is about to leave Verona, and Juliet is trying to convince him to stay with her for just a little longer by telling him it isn't really day yet. _Wilt thou be gone? It is not yet near day. It was the nightingale, and not the lark, that pierced the fearful hollow of thine ear. Nightly she sings on yon pomegranate tree. Believe me, love, it was the nightingale._ And Romeo says…"

Kevin began to read aloud. "_It was the lark, the herald of the morn, no nightingale. Look, love, what envious streaks do…_" he paused as he tried to decipher the Shakespearean text. "…_do lace the severing clouds in yonder east. Night's candles are burnt out, and… jocund day… _Jocund day? Okay. _Jocund day stands tiptoe on…_ Are you laughing at me?"

I shook my head, even though I was indeed laughing at him.

"Sure, laugh it up. Make fun of the rock star because he doesn't say things like 'lace the severing clouds in yonder east'."

"Kevin, don't be mad," I begged him between giggles. "I'm not laughing _at _you. I'm laughing…okay, at you. But only because the effort you're making is…endearing."

"Well, not everyone can roll this kind of stuff off their tongues and make it sound like it actually means something."

"I wouldn't worry about it. This doesn't make me like you any less," I assured him.

"Well now that I don't have to worry about you liking me any less," Kevin replied with a grin, "I'll have to start working on ways to get you to like me more."

I smiled. "Kevin Lucas, are you flirting with me or making fun of me?"

"Neither, fair saint," Kevin answered, "if either thee dislike."

I recognized these words from _Romeo and Juliet._ Hayden had said the same thing to me on Friday. Coming from Hayden, these words had been poetic, romantic, and a little bit flirtatious. But coming from Kevin, they were more than that. They were…honest.

I smiled. "Quoting Shakespeare now. I am impressed, Mr. Lucas. I think you've just succeeded in making me like you a little more."

"That's what I was going for."

"Shall we continue?" I asked, holding up my copy of _Romeo and Juliet_.

"Let's do this," Kevin agreed, peering back down at the page.

"Mind if I interrupt?" a voice from behind us asked.

Kevin and I both turned around.

"Hayden!" I said, smiling at the sight of my boyfriend. "We're just reading the assignment. Want to join us?"

"Yeah," Kevin put in, not sounding at all pleased. "Have a seat."

"Actually, I was wondering if I could steal my girlfriend for just a minute," Hayden replied. "Macy, could you come with me?"

I waved goodbye to Kevin as Hayden pulled me into the hallway.

"What's up?" I asked, as soon as we were out of earshot.

"I don't want you hanging out with him," Hayden said.

"Kevin?"

"That's right."

I knitted my eyebrows. "But he's my friend."

"Your friend who likes you."

I was confused. "Yeah, Hayden. I like to think that _all_ of my friends like me."

"No, Macy. JONAS boy _likes_ you. And I don't want you hanging out with him."

I felt my anger boiling up inside me. "Kevin and I are just friends. And you can't tell me who I can hang out with. I don't really like your friends either, but you don't hear me complaining."

Hayden crossed his arms. "That's because all of my friends are guys and none of them hit on me when you're not around."

"Kevin wasn't _hitting on me_. He's the most innocent guy on the planet."

"That doesn't change the fact that he likes you. Even the most innocent guy on the planet knows when a girl is totally cool and smoking hot."

"Look, Kevin is _respectful_. And he's totally sweet, so you should… Did you say smoking hot?"

"And totally cool," Hayden added.

I smiled. "Aw, Hayden. That's so sweet."

"Hey, I can be sweet too," Hayden reminded me, putting an arm around me.

"I know," I said, accepting his hug. "Let's not fight anymore, okay?"

"Deal," Hayden agreed. "Bell's about to ring. Wanna get out of here?"

I smiled up at my boyfriend. "I'll go anywhere with you."

**As I wrote the ending to this chapter, I found myself hating myself just a little bit.**

**So, anyways, Kevin was a little moody and out of character in this chapter. I will do my best to make amends in the next chapter. A LOT is coming up in the next chapter, and a lot is gonna go on with Nick, who I feel I've been neglecting a little. I know this chapter was a little rushed. I probably should have slowed the pace down a little and broken it into two chapters. For some reason, this story is way harder to write than 14 Reasons was. Anyways, tell me what you thought. I love reviews, so please, review away!**

**Next Chapter: Like Snow in the Middle of August**


	6. Like Snow in the Middle of August

**I don't own JONAS, but the songs in this story are all mine.**

**How to Crush a Crush: The Easy-to-Use Manual on Losing a Stalker**

**Chapter 6: Like Snow in the Middle of August**

_***Macy***_

"Hayden!" I shouted, catching up to my boyfriend as he made his way to the doors from the parking lot.

"Hey, Macy," he said, turning around to wait for me. He put an arm around me when I caught up with him and he planted a kiss on my forehead.

"Hayden!" I hissed, looking around us. "People are watching."

Hayden shrugged. "So what? I can't kiss my girlfriend in the parking lot?"

"Not like _that_."

He looked confused. "Like what?"

"Like _that_. Like you're trying to make sure everyone knows I belong to you or something."

"Don't you?"

I looked up sternly at my boyfriend. "I'm going to ignore that comment. Look, I have a basketball game this weekend."

"So?"

"So, I'm gonna need my charm back."

Hayden raised an eyebrow. "What charm?"

"The charm I had around my wrist when you rescued me."

"When I re—oh, right. When I rescued you." Hayden scratched his neck. "I don't think you were wearing a charm."

"Of course I was wearing a charm. I tied it around my wrist and it got caught in a filter. That's why I couldn't swim back up."

"Oh," Hayden said. "Well, I don't remember it. Maybe it's still in the filter."

"No, I checked. Are you sure you don't have it? I need it for the basketball game."

Hayden laughed. "Why do you need a charm to play basketball?"

"Because it's good luck. I can't win a game without it."

"Macy, Macy, Macy," Hayden said, squeezing my shoulder. "Good luck charms are just a silly superstition. They don't help or hinder us in any way."

"Yes they do. I always win my games when I wear my lucky number one charm. And Kevin has this boot that he wears during concerts that keep him from being struck by…"

"Why do you bring up that guy every time we talk?" Hayden interrupted me.

"Because I like Kevin," I replied, my voice and blood pressure rising. "He's my _friend_."

"Are you sure about that? Because the way to talk about him, I'm beginning to think he's more than that."

"Look," I said, pulling his hand off of my shoulder and taking a step away from him. "I can have as many friends as I want to. I don't belong to you."

"Where are you going?" Hayden asked as I began to walk away.

"I have class," I shouted over my shoulder. "I'll talk to you when you're done being an idiot."

_***Kevin***_

Maybe this made me a terrible person, but I was thrilled to see Macy's unhappy face on Tuesday morning. Every sign of dissatisfaction in her relationship with Hayden was a good sign to me. There was no doubt in my mind that I was head-over-heels in love with her. I only wished I'd realized it a week sooner, when she was still crazy Macy, and still crazy about me. But despite the drama of the past week, I still believed in destiny, and I knew that destiny could not allow a girl as awesome as Macy to remain attached to a snake as slimy as Hayden Bradley. So when I saw her melancholy gaze that morning, I knew there was trouble in paradise.

"Hey Joe," I said, nudging my brother. "What do you think is up with Macy?"

Joe shrugged. "Stella says Hayden's starting to get on her nerves with his possessiveness." He handed me a black velvet box. "Can you put this in your locker?"

"You think they're gonna break up?" I asked, trying not to look too interested. I stuffed the box into my locker and shut the door.

"I don't suppose it can last too much longer. Macy's pretty independent, and if Hayden's as possessive as Stella says he is, she can't really be very happy with him. But the only way to know for sure is to ask her."

"I don't think so."

"Come on," Joe said, grabbing my arm. "Let's go talk to her."

"What?" I said, trying to pull away. "No, Joe. I don't want to talk to—Hi Macy!"

Macy smiled at us and raised her eyebrows slightly. "Hey guys. What's up?"

"Not much," Joe replied, as the three of us began walking down the hall. "What's up with you?"

He nudged me in the side. "Yeah," I piped up. "How is everything with Hayden?"

Macy groaned. "Oh, _now_, you want to talk about my charming boyfriend?"

"Why?" I asked, suddenly wanting very much to talk about Hayden. "Is something wrong with him?"

"Besides the obvious," Joe added. Macy and I both sent him questioning glances. "His feet," Joe explained. "He has, like, huge feet. Haven't you noticed?"

Macy rolled her eyes, choosing to ignore Joe. "Hayden's a little…protective."

"And by 'protective'," Joe cut in, "you mean 'possessive'."

Macy sighed. "Okay, so Hayden has the _slight_ tendency to be somewhat possessive, but that's only because he's trying to be…chivalrous."

Joe smiled and nodded. "Right, I forgot. Hayden's a _romantic_."

"Look, Hayden only acts the way he does because it's his way of defending me," Macy explained. "Like Romeo does for Juliet."

"Just before killing Juliet's cousin," I added.

Macy stared at me, open-mouthed for a moment before replying, "By _accident_."

Joe laughed. "Why would you want your relationship to be like _Romeo and Juliet_? They have to keep it a big secret right until the end when they kill themselves."

Macy crossed her arms. "You guys just don't understand romance."

"Hey," Joe replied, "I'm a romantic guy. Just ask my girlfriend. But romance does not equal a relationship." He put an arm over each of our shoulders. "A relationship shouldn't be about romance. It should be about two people who like each other a lot. Because they started out as friends. Or as a superstar and his biggest fan."

I elbowed my brother hard on the side, not about to thank him for his not-so-subtle hints.

"What exactly are you saying?" Macy asked Joe, suspiciously, sneaking a peek at me.

"Maybe you're life's not like _Romeo and Juliet_," Joe told her, taking a few steps ahead of us and turning around, walking backwards so he could face the two of us. "Maybe it's more like _A Midsummer Night's Dream_ or _Twelfth Night_. You know, something with a happy ending. One of those plays where everyone discovers that they were in love with the wrong person all along."

Macy and I stopped walking at the same moment, both staring at Joe in surprise.

"What?" Joe said, just before turning the corner. "I know my Shakespeare."

"Was he just suggesting what I think he was suggesting?" Macy asked, turning to face me.

I shifted uncomfortably. "Depends what you think he was suggesting." Before Macy could open her mouth, I looked down at my wrist animatedly. "What do you know? Time for class. Let's go."

"Kevin!" Macy cried, as I hurried to class. "You're not even wearing a watch! Kev, wait up!"

_***Stella***_

My stomach did a flip as I spotted Joe walking toward me.

"Hey there," he greeted me, smiling.

"Hello Joe," I replied, welcoming his good morning kiss. "And how are you this morning?"

"What can I say," Joe replied. "You make me a better person. It's only eight o'clock and I've already made a positive contribution to society."

I nodded. "And by that you mean that you've sneakily interfered in my best friend's love life in order to make her realize that she is meant to be with your brother."

"Hey, you know as well as I do that those two are meant to be. They're so alike, it's scary."

"I don't think it's my place to say who Macy belongs with."

"Come on, Stells," Joe said, putting an arm around me. "You think a jerk like Hayden is better for Macy than my sweet and innocent older brother?"

"What has Hayden done to make you think he's such a jerk?" I asked

Joe's mouth snapped shut like he'd just realized he'd said something wrong.

"What?" I asked. "Did he do something to Macy that I don't know about? Joe, tell me!"

"There's nothing to tell," Joe said quickly.

I rolled my eyes. "Why do I always feel like you're keeping some big secret from me?"

"There's nothing to hide," he replied. His mouth suddenly curved into a sly grin. "Well, there's one thing. But that's a surprise."

I smiled. "You got me a present?"

"Maybe."

"What is it?" I asked, squeezing him around the waist.

"I'm not telling."

"Is it in your locker?" I prodded. "Because I'll find it. I know your combination."

"Which is why I asked Kevin to put it in his locker," Joe replied. "Do you know his combination?"

"No," I said, pouting.

"Good," Joe said, kissing me on the cheek before walking off to class.

I grinned. "But I know someone who does."

_***Macy***_

"Macymacymacymacymacymacymacy!" a tall blonde hurricane shouted at me as I headed toward the caf for lunch.

"Excited much, Stells?" I asked, as my best friend came to a screeching halt at my side.

"Macy, I need your help with something."

"Anything. Name it."

She put her hands on my shoulders and looked me right in the eyes. "I need you to help me break into Kevin's locker."

"Except that," I amended, prying her hands off of my shoulders.

"Come on, Mace! I know you know the combo. I just need to take a teeny tiny peek at a present that Joe is hiding from me in there." She fell to her knees in front of me. "Pretty please?"

"Hello, whatever happened to invasion of privacy? Or does that only apply to crazed JONAS fans?"

"Privacy, shmivacy," Stella replied, waving the thought away. "This is an emergency."

"Yeah, I get it," I said, rolling my eyes. "This is one of those, break-into-Kevin's-locker, invasion-of-privacy emergencies."

Stella stuck out her bottom lip. "Pwease Mwacy?"

I sighed. "Fine. But you're taking the fall for this when the guys accuse me of being crazy."

"Absolutely," Stella said, jumping to her feet. "Let's go."

She grabbed my hand and tore down the hall, dragging me behind her.

"Okay," she said, when we arrived at the oldest Lucas's locker. "Do your thing."

"Here goes," I said, taking hold of the lock. "Turn right the number of JONAS albums that have gone platinum. Left the number of weeks their first hit topped the charts. Right the number of fake JONAS accounts following me on Twitter."

With a nearly inaudible click, the lock gave way and the locker door swung open.

"I'm impressed," Stella commented. "Girl knows her JONAS."

"No one knows JONAS like I do," I assured her. "Now, what are you waiting for? Go invade privacy."

I stood over Stella's shoulder as she rummaged through the locker.

"Any idea what you're looking for?"

"I don't know," Stella replied. "Something that looks like something a guy would give a girl like…like a velvet jewelry box. Jackpot."

"Ooh," I said, when Stella held up the black velvet box. "Open it. Let's see it."

Stella snapped open the box.

"Well?" I said. "What is it? A necklace?"

Stella frowned. "It's a note."

"Joe put a note for you in a velvet box in Kevin's locker?"

"'Dear Stella, Congratulations, you've found an empty box. You're real present is hidden somewhere much safer. You'll just have to be patient. Happy one day anniversary. Love, Joe.'"

"So does Joe actually think that every day is an anniversary?" I asked, as I began peeking through the random items on the second shelf. "Cause that could get annoying pretty fast. You'll be sick of him by your six day anniversary."

"I can't believe I went to all this trouble for a stinking note."

"I told you to stay out of Kevin's locker, didn't I?"

"Says the girl who stuffed herself into said locker last week," Stella replied, tossing the black box back into the locker. "Besides, what are you doing right now?"

"What? I'm curious."

"Well, duh. It's Kevin. Everyone's curious about him, but they don't inspect his knick knacks."

"What does a high school boy want with a green stuffed giraffe or a…?" I trailed off as a glint of gold caught my eye.

"Macy? What is it?"

"Stella," I said, reaching into the locker and pulling out the gold chain. "What's my lucky number one charm doing in Kevin's locker?"

_***Joe***_

"It's beautiful," Alicia said, handing back the silver bracelet. "Stella will love it."

"You think?"

"I know. Although I don't think most people celebrate one day anniversaries."

"Macy doesn't think I can be romantic," I said, slipping the bracelet into my pocket. "But I'm Mr. Romance. That is what I bring to the group. Nick is the smart one, Kevin's the loveable one, and I'm the romantic one. And the hot one. And the…"

"Speaking of your brothers," Alicia cut me off, "where are they? Because you're starting to get on my nerves."

I took a giant bite of my pudding. "Nurse's office," I said around a mouthful of tapioca. "Kevin accidently super glued his hand to Nick's neck."

"How did Kevin accidently glue his hand to Nick?"

I swallowed my bite of pudding. "Well we were in shop class, see? And Kevin was working on his—"

"Joseph Lucas!"

I jumped at the sound of my girlfriend's voice. "Stella! Macy," I said, patting the seat beside me. "Have a seat. What's up?"

Stella took a seat, pulling Macy down in the seat beside her. "Where's Kevin?" she demanded.

"Having his hand removed from Nick's neck. Why?"

Macy cringed. "Again?"

"What does she mean 'again'?" Alicia interjected.

Stella waved away Alicia's question. "Never mind. You won't believe what we just found in Kevin's locker."

I laughed. "Ah, you found the decoy present. Funny, right?"

Neither Stella nor Macy looked at all amused.

"Tough crowd," I commented. "Alicia thought it was funny."

"No I didn't," Alicia said.

"But you laughed."

"Yeah, but not at your joke. At you."

"Hey, that decoy present was a funny prank, and you know it."

"Joe!" Stella shouted. "We're not talking about the decoy present!"

Alicia leaned forward. "You mean you found something else in Kevin's locker? Was it a dirty magazine, because if it was, my mind will be blown."

"What was it?" I asked.

Macy sighed and held out her left fist. Alicia and I watched intently as she dramatically unfolded her palm to reveal a golden number one charm on a broken chain.

Alicia frowned. "I don't get it."

I gasped. "He left it in his locker? I thought it was in his backpack!"

"Wait," Stella said. "You knew about this?"

"I…uh…well…"

"You knew that Kevin had my charm?" Macy asked, placing the charm on the table.

"I might have been aware of that fact, yes," I admitted.

"Does it mean what we think it means?" Stella asked.

I swallowed hard as both Stella and Macy began staring me down. Finally, I broke down. "Yes. Kevin is the one who saved Macy from drowning last week."

Alicia gasped. "Kevin was the one who…? Wait, I still don't know what's going on. Does this have something to do with that day that Kevin burst in on Nick and me soaking wet and clutching one of his boots?"

Macy smacked her forehead. "The lucky boot. Of course. But I don't get it. Why wouldn't Kevin want me to know that it was him? Why would he let me believe it was Hayden?"

I bit my lip nervously. "Because when you were obsessing over your guardian angel…"

I saw the light go on in Stella's eyes. "…she didn't have time to obsess over you guys," she finished for me.

The dark mood surrounding the table was momentarily broken when Kevin ran up, followed closely behind by Nick.

"Good news," Kevin announced, holding up his left hand. "We're detached."

"Bad news," Nick added, tightening the scarf around his neck. "The acetone the nurse used gave me a rash again."

Nick's jaw clenched when he spotted Macy's lucky charm on the table.

Kevin looked around the table, concerned. "Why the long faces, everyone?"

Nick elbowed Kevin in the side and pointed to the charm. Kevin swallowed hard. "Macy, I can explain."

"Joe already explained it," Macy replied, getting to her feet. "You know, if I was such a pain as your biggest fan, you could have just told me. Instead of letting me make a fool of myself."

"You're not a pain," Kevin said quickly, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Macy, you're the greatest."

"What Kevin means," Nick put in, "is that you're our friend."

"Well if this is the way JONAS treats their friends," Macy replied, snatching up her lucky charm, "then I'm no fan of yours."

"I'd better follow her," Stella whispered, as Macy walked away.

"Are you mad?" I asked, as Stella stood up.

"I'll get over it," Stella assured me. "Macy might not, though."

_***Nick***_

"Nick. Hello?"

I shook my thoughts away and turned my attention to the girl sitting across from me. "Sorry," I mumbled. "I was distracted.

"On our first date?" Alicia replied. "We're off to a good start."

"Sorry," I said again. "It's just this whole Macy thing…"

"You need to let that go," Alicia said. "At least while you're out with me. It'll all blow over. Trust me."

I nodded. "You're right."

"Of course I'm right."

I sighed. "Except that this is kinda my fault. Kevin wanted to tell her the truth and I told him…"

"_Nick_," Alicia interrupted.

"Sorry."

"That's okay."

I cleared my throat, forcing the Macy dilemma from my mind. "You look nice tonight."

Alicia smiled. "Thank you. You can hold my hand across the table if you want to."

I gladly accepted her hand, gently stoking her slender fingers.

"So," I said, trying to think of anything to talk about besides Macy and Kevin. "You and me, huh?"

"We're good together," Alicia replied.

"I'm glad we agree on that."

"Should we eat our food before it gets cold?"

"Or I could just keep holding your hand."

She laughed. "That's fine with me."

I was about to reply when I noticed something strange. I must have been incredibly distracted not to notice it before. The man sitting by himself behind Alicia was acting…not normal. For one thing, he'd been sitting with his menu open for at least thirty minutes. Only, I still hadn't seen him look down at the menu. He was still staring at me. That when I noticed something unusual about the menu.

Now, fancy restaurants like these were known to have strange items on the menus, but this man's menu had something particularly unusual on it.

A camera lens.

"Nick, is something wrong?" Alicia asked.

"Photographer," I whispered. "Right behind you."

Alicia nodded, as if she was not at all surprised by this. "There's one behind you too."

I peeked over my shoulder and found that she was right. Another paparazzi with a faux menu sat alone at the table behind me.

"And another behind that plant," Alicia continued. "And one peeking through the window."

Alicia's calm attitude about this situation was unsettling.

"How did they find me here?"

Alicia shrugged. "I invited them."

There is nothing she could have said that would have shocked me more than that did. If she'd claimed that she'd been born out of Lady Gaga's ear and grown in a petri dish in the Horace Mantis chemistry lab, I would have been less surprised.

"You…invited them?"

"Yeah. Why? What's wrong?"

I let go of her hand. "Why would you do that?"

"It's good publicity."

"Publicity?"

Alicia nodded. "Yeah. I mean, what's the point in dating a rock star if you're not gonna make a few headlines?"

"Gee, I don't know," I replied, sarcastically. "Maybe because you like me."

Alicia looked taken aback. "Of course I like you, Nick."

"Why? Because I'm a rock star?"

"That's not the only reason."

"Why else then?"

Alicia looked down at her hands.

My mouth fell open in disbelief. "You can't think of anything? Do you know anything about me besides that I'm in JONAS?"

Alicia remained silent.

"So this was all about the fame."

I took her silence as a yes.

"I can't believe you would use me like that."

"I wasn't using you. I was…I just wanted to be someone, you know?"

"In other words, you were using me."

"You don't understand," Alicia defended herself. "You don't know what it's like to be nobody."

"So this was all about getting noticed," I concluded, standing up and pulling my wallet from my back pocket. "Well, here's a headline for you: 'Unknown red-haired girl eats alone.'"

Slamming a wad of bills down on the table, I turned on my heels and stormed away.

_***Macy***_

I stood up from my spot on the bottom bleacher when Hayden walked into the pool area.

"You wanted me to meet you here?" he said, walking up beside me.

"Hayden, we need to talk," I told him.

"Those are never good words," he remarked, taking a seat.

I sat back down beside him. "Hayden, remember what I told you on the day that we admitted we liked each other?"

Hayden searched my face, as if to figure out whether I was asking him a trick question. "That you liked me?"

I sighed. "I said that this isn't a play."

He raised an eyebrow. "I don't get where you're going with this."

"It's not a play, Hayden," I repeated. "But you've been acting this entire time."

"Acting?"

"It was Kevin!" I cried. "Kevin was the one who saved my life, and you told me it was you."

Hayden stood up, crossing his arms defensively. "Can he prove this?"

"He had this." I replied, pulling my charm out of my pocket.

He shrugged. "Okay, fine. I didn't save your life. So, are you gonna dump me and start going out with Kevin now just because he's your 'guardian angel'?"

I crossed my arms. "No. I'm not. But I am dumping you."

Hayden's mouth fell open. "You're really breaking up with me over this?"

"No."

"But you just said…"

"I'm dumping you because you're possessive, you're arrogant, and I just ran out of reasons to believe that you're the romantic guy I thought you were."

Hayden was silent for a moment before he muttered, "Is there a reason you wanted me to meet you by the pool?"

I smiled. "Because when I dump a guy…" I stepped forward and gave him a little shove, watching him tumble into the pool, "I really dump him."

xoxoxo

I pulled my sweater tighter around my shoulders as I walked along the sidewalk next to the park. It was getting dark outside, and the wind was starting to get chilly, but I wasn't ready to go home. I knew that as soon as I did, I would be in bed, eating cookie dough and being forced to stare at my posters of JONAS. I couldn't bear to look into Kevin's eyes just yet.

As I strolled toward my destination—the playground—I swore I heard guitar music. As I grew closer, I realized I was right. Sitting on one of the swings, his back to me, was Nick, playing a slow tune on his guitar. I stood behind him while he played, not wanting to discourage him from continuing his song.

_It happened again.  
I fell in love  
with a girl I thought I knew.  
And I guess it all  
happened so fast  
that I never really got a good look at you.  
Because I fell for you_

_Like snow in the middle of August  
you took me by surprise.  
You came without even a warning.  
you had me hypnotized.  
Like snow in the middle of August._

_I didn't know  
I could be so wrong  
but I didn't know you at all.  
It just goes to show  
that what you see  
isn't what you get after all.  
And maybe this is all my fault.  
Maybe I shouldn't have let you in.  
I didn't know you could be so cold,  
like ice against my skin._

_Like snow in the middle of August  
you took me by surprise.  
You put me under your spell  
and I fell for all your lies.  
Like a bullet to the chest  
I found out what you were.  
I learned the truth about you  
and I didn't know how bad I could hurt.  
Like snow in the middle of August._

I clapped for him as I walked forward and took a seat on the swing beside him.

"Macy!" Nick cried. "Were you there the whole time?"

"I take it your date didn't go so well," I replied. "I like to sit on the swings after a heartbreak too."

Nick sighed. "I thought I understood people until today."

"And you were wrong?" I asked.

He looked straight into my eyes. "I'm an idiot, Macy."

"I'm sure that's not true."

"Then why did I trust a phony like Alicia," Nick replied, "and tell Kevin that you were dangerous?"

I began to pump my legs lightly. "So you misjudged me and mistrusted Alicia. That doesn't mean you're an idiot."

"Thanks, I guess."

"Nick?"

"Yeah?"

"Why do people lie?"

Nick strummed lightly on his guitar. "Because they want something from you. That's why Alicia lied to me. And why Hayden lied to you."

"Is that why you guys lied to me?"

Nick stopped strumming. He sighed again. "Mace, my brothers lied because I convinced them it was necessary."

"And your brothers do whatever you tell them to?"

He set his guitar gingerly on the ground and began to pump his legs as well. "Usually. Yeah."

"Then I guess you're all idiots."

That got a small laugh out of Nick.

We both pumped our legs in silence for a while before Nick said, "Kevin wanted to be honest with you all along."

"But he wasn't."

"For my sake," Nick replied. "But Kevin actually likes all of your fan girl…eccentricities."

I let this information sink in. "He does?"

He pumped his legs harder to get the swing moving higher. "He likes everything about you, actually."

"He does?"

"To be honest, Macy," Nick said, swinging higher and higher, "I think he's in love with you."

**Next Chapter: Happy Endings**


	7. Happy Endings

**Well, folks, the final chapter is here. It's been a long ride. And by that I mean, this story took entirely too long to write. I don't think I enjoyed writing it quite as much as 14 Reasons Why Not, but I had a lot of fun writing the songs, especially Kevin's songs. So read and review. I'd like to know what you thought, good or bad.**

**I don't own JONAS, but the songs in this story are all mine.**

**How to Crush a Crush: The Easy-to-Use Manual on Losing a Stalker**

**Chapter 7: Happy Endings**

_***Macy***_

When I arrived at school Wednesday morning, Kevin was waiting for me at the main entrance.

Now, I wasn't mad at Kevin anymore. Nick had explained to me the day before what happened, and Kevin had called me four times to apologize, so I had to forgive him. But that didn't mean I was ready to face him. Not after what Nick had told me yesterday.

I remembered Hayden telling me that Kevin had a thing for me. He'd even accused me of liking Kevin back, which I, of course, denied. But I only denied it because I had to. I mean, a girl can't just tell her ridiculously possessive boyfriend that she has secret feelings for another guy.

It was funny; I'd built Hayden up in my mind as this perfect guy. He was smart. He was gorgeous. He was romantic. But he was never genuine. And he never made me feel like my heart was about to jump out of my throat, which was the way I was feeling when I spotted Kevin waiting for me by the door. But now that I was unattached, would I be able to hold my composure around Kevin? I mean, just a week earlier I'd frightened him away by jumping out of his locker. And that was before Nick informed me that Kevin was in love with me. Could I handle this?

And there was an even bigger question to ask myself. Could I trust Kevin? I wasn't mad at him anymore, but after being fooled by Hayden, I wasn't sure I was ready to trust guys again. Particularly guys who lie to me about rescuing me so that I'll leave them alone and then let me go out with a guy who they know is lying to me and let me make a complete fool of myself. Sure Kevin was sweet, charming, and funny, but I couldn't put "trustworthy" on his list of attributes.

"Hi Macy," Kevin greeted me as I walked through the door.

"Hi Kevin," I mumbled, walking quickly and purposefully, hoping he'd take the hint that I didn't want to talk to him.

But no dice. I could hear his footsteps behind me, moving quickly to keep up. I heard the click of his boot on the linoleum followed by the thud of his sock. I was dying to ask why he was wearing only one boot once again, but at the same time, I was afraid to know the reason.

"Macy, can I talk to you?" Kevin asked, between heavy breaths, as he was practically running to keep up with me.

"I can't," I replied. "Have to get to class. Don't want to be late."

"Class doesn't start for another…twelve minutes."

"Well I have to…talk to my teacher before class…about tutoring," I lied.

"But all of the teachers are busy right now. Today's the weekly morning staff meeting."

I sighed as I arrived at my locker. "Fine, let's talk."

Kevin leaned against the locker beside mine. "I feel really terrible about lying to you," he said. "Which is why from now on, I'm gonna be completely honest with you."

"Go on," I said, dialing my locker combination. Right the number of freckles on Kevin's neck. Left the number of guitars in Kevin's guitar closet. Right the number of lobsters Kevin and I rescued from the lobster tank in the grocery store during the summer when we went on a beef jerky run.

"I'm gonna start by saying that I'm not freaked out that you memorized my locker combination."

I pulled my hand away from my locker. "You're not?"

"I'm not," Kevin replied. "Because I know yours too."

I couldn't help but grin. "There's no way."

"It's true," Kevin insisted. "Right the number of sequins in your favorite headband, left the number on your tennis jersey, and right the number of lobsters we rescued from the lobster tank that one day when we went to Albertson's for beef jerky."

I was taken aback. "You counted the sequins in my headband?"

"What can I say?" Kevin said, as I pulled my locker open. "I know everything about you."

At that moment, something fell from my locker and landed with a thud at my feet. I picked it up, confused. "Kevin, what was your lucky boot doing in my locker?"

"I would have waited for you in there myself," Kevin explained, "but I didn't fit."

"So this is supposed to be symbolic or something?" I asked, holding up the boot.

Kevin nodded. "Yes it is."

I looked from Kevin, to my locker, to the boot in my hand. "I don't get it."

"Don't get what?"

"The boot. What does it symbolize here?"

Kevin pondered on this question for a moment. "I don't really know. I thought you would just get it and I wouldn't have to explain it. Things aren't going the way I pictured them."

I tried to hide my smile as I handed him back his boot. "Okay Kevin. Just tell me exactly what you were thinking when you broke into my locker this morning and put your lucky boot in it."

"I was thinking that last week, I opened my locker and you popped out," Kevin explained. "So I thought that if you found me—or my boot in this case—in you locker…you would know."

"Know what, Kevin?"

"That I'm your biggest fan."

_***Nick***_

"What I don't get," Joe said, "is that before you stormed out of the restaurant, you paid for her dinner."

"It was an expensive restaurant," I replied. "I couldn't just leave her there without paying for dinner."

"On the contrary, baby bro, I think you could have."

"She did kind of deserve it," Stella agreed.

"It didn't matter if she deserved it," I said. "I just couldn't do that to her."

Joe rolled his eyes. "Geez, Nick. Don't tell me you still like her."

"Well I can't just make myself un-like someone the minute they wrong me. It takes time."

"You're not gonna go out with her again, are you?" Joe asked.

I shook my head. "No way. Not gonna happen."

"What are you gonna do if she tries to make up with you?" Stella asked.

"I can't really deal with that right now. I think I'm gonna avoid her for a few days."

"Well you'd better make a run for it," Joe replied. "Because here she comes now."

Just as Joe said, Alicia was turning the corner into the corridor where we were standing.

"I'll talk to you guys later," I mumbled, turning on my heels and making a beeline for the first door I saw.

When I was safely inside a room, I leaned against the door and slid to the floor in relief. Then someone spoke to me.

"Hey, you're not supposed to be in here."

"Huh?" I said, looking up at the girl speaking to me.

"This is the girl's room," she said. "The men's room is across the hall."

I looked around the room to find that I had indeed walked into the girl's bathroom. "Not again," I mumbled.

The girl crossed her arms uncomfortably. "Are you gonna leave or what?"

I bit my lip. "Well, see, I'm trying to hide from someone…"

"Bullies?"

"No. An ex-girlfriend."

The girl furrowed her eyebrows. "Well this isn't the most logical place to hide from a girl, is it?"

"You've got me there…um…"

"Mindy," the girl filled in. "We have six classes together."

"Mindy. Right. I knew that."

Mindy shifted her weight from one leg to the other. "Look, Nick of JONAS…"

"Please don't call me that," I blurted.

"Whatever. Look, Nick. I kind of have some…business to do in here. And I can't when you're in here. Because it's weird. So do you think you could leave?"

"Right," I said, standing up. "Sorry."

I turned around and reached for the door handle, but before I could open it, someone else did. To my surprise, in walked Alicia Roberts.

"Alicia!"

"Hi, Nick," Alicia said. "I was looking for you."

"Why would you look for him in the girls' bathroom?" Mindy asked.

"Can we talk?" Alicia asked, ignoring Mindy's question.

"I don't think so," I replied.

"Is this the ex-girlfriend you were hiding from?" Mindy asked.

"I really want to talk to you in private," Alicia insisted.

"I'd really like to do something in private too," Mindy said. "So if you two could just have this conversation somewhere that's _not_ the girls' room, that would be great."

"Fine. We can talk," I said. "Atrium. Let's go."

When we were alone in the atrium, I was determined to shoot down anything Alicia had to say. Then she spoke.

"I was wrong."

"Listen," I told her. "I don't care what you…Wait, what?"

"I was wrong," she repeated.

I crossed my arms. "Yeah, you were."

"I had a lot of fun hanging out with you for the past few days," Alicia continued. "And it wasn't because you were a rock star."

"Go on."

"I like you because you're smart, and you're funny, and…"

"A good kisser?" I filled in.

"We never kissed."

"That's a shame," I replied. "You'll never know what a good kisser I am."

Alicia laughed. "That's what I meant by funny."

There was a moment of awkward silence before I spoke again. "But, you know, saying this to me now doesn't change what you did to me last night."

Alicia sat down on the metal bench and hung her head. "I know that. I made a big mistake and I feel terrible for it."

I sighed and took a seat beside her. "I made a big mistake too," I admitted.

"What do you mean?" Alicia asked.

"I let a really nice girl go out with a total creep for my own selfish reasons. And my brother ended up paying for it. I'm…far from perfect."

Alicia looked up at me, hopefully. "Does that mean you forgive me?"

"It means…I'm willing to give you a second chance to be friends."

Alicia smiled. "That's good."

"But," I continued, "you did use me. And I reserve the right to hold that over your head in order to get my way all the time."

"That sounds fair."

"And we're _just friends_."

Alicia nodded, the smile fading from her face.

"You're cool with that?" I asked.

"I'll take what I can get," she replied. "Besides…from what I've heard from some of your former significant others, you're a pretty average kisser."

Smiling, Alicia stood up from the bench and walked out the glass door of the atrium, leaving me stunned on the metal bench.

_***Joe***_

"Talon Kirk," my English teacher, Mrs. Grant, said sternly. "That is not how we treat reading materials in this class."

English was always the most chaotic class of the day. It was the period when Stella and I would sit in the back of the room and talk in low voices so that we couldn't be overheard over the noise of the room.

"Mr. Kirk! Take your seat!"

"Stella," I whispered, tapping my girlfriend on the shoulder.

"What's up?" she asked.

"In all the excitement yesterday, I forgot to give you this," I told her, pulling the silver necklace I'd bought for her out of the front pocket of my backpack.

Stella smiled, taking the necklace from me and reading the inscription. "'To Stella. Happy one day anniversary. Love, Joe.' Aw, Joe, that's sweet."

I grinned. "I told Macy that I could be romantic."

"This is very romantic of you, Joe," Stella agreed. "But you're not gonna call every day an anniversary are you? Because, by definition, anniversaries only occur once a year."

"So I should take back the two day anniversary present I bought you?"

"Well if you already bought it…"

"Stells, I'm kidding. I didn't buy you a two day anniversary present."

"Right. I knew that."

"Mr. Kirk! Mr. Valentine!" Mrs. Grant cried. "Your text books are not tennis rackets!"

"So how do you think Kevin's conversation with Macy went this morning?" Stella asked, leaning toward me.

"I don't know. I haven't talked to him since we got to school this morning. But he said something about breaking into her locker, so hopefully whatever he had planned was…"

"Joe!" Stella cut me off, pointing toward the door. "Look who's here."

I turned around to find Hayden Bradley standing in the doorway.

"What a creep," I muttered. "Didn't I tell you all along, Stella? That guy is a creep."

"You called it, Joe."

"That's right. I called it."

"Can I help you, Mr. Bradley?" Mrs. Grant asked.

"Actually, I'm here to talk to Stella," Hayden said. Stella and I exchanged worried glances as Hayden stepped into the room and approached Mrs. Grant's desk. "I have a note," he said, placing a slip of paper on the desk.

Mrs. Grant gave the note a one-over before nodding at Hayden. "All right. This looks legitimate."

In a grand gesture, Hayden presented Mrs. Grant with an apple from his bag before making his way toward the back of the room where Stella and I were sitting.

"An apple?" I said, when he was standing between Stella and myself. "Really?"

"Stella," Hayden said, ignoring me. "I need to…"

"Talk to me about Macy?" Stella guessed.

"Actually," Hayden replied, "I need to talk to you…not about Macy."

"Oh geez," I muttered, putting my face in my hands. "He is not gonna do what I think he's about to do."

Just as I predicted, Hayden pulled a long-stemmed red rose from his bag. "Stella, would you consider going out with me."

"He just did it," I said, shaking my head.

I watched as Stella took the rose from Hayden's hand. Then, to my surprise, she ripped off the outermost petal and tossed it to the floor.

"He loves me," she said, reaching for another petal and plucking it from the stem. "He loves me not. He loves me. He loves me not. Loves me. Loves me not."

I watched the petals float one by one onto the stained green carpet, until Stella said, "He loves me," one last time, leaving a lone petal hanging off the rose stem. Smiling, she handed what was left of the rose back to Hayden. "Too bad, Hayden. It looks like you love me not."

_***Stella***_

"What happened after that?" Macy asked, eagerly.

"He just walked out of the room, totally stunned," I replied, proudly.

"Mrs. Grant and the rest of the class had no clue what was going on," Joe added.

"What I want to know," Nick said, "is how you knew there would be the right number of petals on the flower."

"I didn't," I replied. "But fate's been working in my favor lately, so I took my chances."

"Speaking of taking chances," Joe said, "you're not gonna go out with Alicia, are you?"

Nick shook his head. "Not a chance. I told her we could be friends, but that's all. I'm not going there again."

"So, Macy," I said, turning to my best friend. "What happened with Kevin this morning?"

Macy grinned, but didn't answer.

"What, now you're not talking?" Joe asked. "What's up with that?"

"I don't think she needs to," Nick told him, looking at the cafeteria door. "Here comes Kevin now."

The three of us watched eagerly as Kevin walked toward our table. When he finally arrived, he took a seat next to Macy and casually took her hand as if it was nothing new. Smiling, Macy leaned in for a kiss.

Nick and Joe both groaned loudly and began throwing French fries at the new couple.

"Hey!" Macy cried, pulling a crinkle cut from her hair.

"So I guess everything worked out between you two," I commented. "But what's with the PDA?"

"Yeah, come on Kev," Joe said. "You hate public displays of affection."

"You _both_ do," I added.

Macy and Kevin both grinned sheepishly.

"I guess I suddenly understand the appeal," Macy replied, as Kevin gave her a quick peck on the cheek.

"So, what did I miss?" he asked, reaching for one of Nick's fries.

"Well," Joe began, "Nick and Alicia are…"

"Just friends," Nick said, quickly.

"And Hayden asked Stella out right in front of me."

"Right after Macy dumped him? What, does he have a bucket list or something?" Kevin asked, popping a fry into his mouth.

Macy rolled her eyes. "He must."

"Well that's pathetic."

"Speaking of pathetic," Nick began. "You guys should have been in my history class today…"

"Ahem."

We all looked up to see a petite girl standing over Nick's shoulder.

"Oh," Nick said, recognizing the girl. "Um…"

"Mindy," the girl filled in.

"Right. From the girls' room."

"The girls' room?" Joe repeated, confused.

"Yeah," Mindy replied. "Listen, Nick. I heard you offered tutoring in geometry, and I was wondering…"

"I don't think so!" Nick shouted, standing up and slamming his fist into his plate of fries.

Mindy took a step back, frightened. "But I just…"

"You honestly think I'm gonna fall for that one again. Sure, it starts out with tutoring. But the next thing I know, it turns out you've been smarter than me all along, and we're in a restaurant full of paparazzi!"

"I'm confused," Mindy whispered.

"Oh, I'll bet you are," Nick replied, turning and storming away.

Mindy nervously tugged her sweater tightly around herself before turning to face the rest of us. "So, um…Do you guys know anyone who's good in geometry?"

_***Kevin***_

"You know," I said, putting an arm around my girlfriend as we walked together to class. "The past week has been pretty crazy. But everything's turning out pretty good. Not like Romeo and Juliet. I finished reading it last night… Harsh stuff."

Macy laughed. "Now you know what I meant by tragedy. I don't see why they make us read that kind of stuff in high school. We don't deal with tragedy well."

"Do you think Nick's gonna be all right?" I asked.

"That whole thing with Alicia was pretty brutal," Macy replied. "But Nick gets his heart broken on a weekly basis. He'll spring back in no time."

"You think?"

"I guarantee you."

"That's good. Because I hate sad endings."

"You know," Macy said, snuggling in close to my side. "I almost stopped believing in happy endings. Kind of over-dramatic of me."

"Then I guess I'm over-dramatic, too," I replied. "Because so did I."

I smiled as I walked with Macy to our drama class. Everything finally seemed right. Macy had her hero, and I had my biggest fan.

Romeo and Juliet had an epic romance, but if you asked me, they had nothing on Kevin and Macy.

"You know, Kevin," Macy said, giving me a kiss on my inner wrist that made sparks shoot up my arm and down my spine, "it's strange to think that none of this would have happened if I hadn't stuffed myself in your locker."

I nodded, grinning. "You're welcome in my locker anytime, Macy Misa."

_All I want to do is live for you.  
You make everything all right.  
But if I had to die for you,  
well, I think I just might.  
Romeo's world ended  
when he lost his Juliet.  
But I have you here beside me now.  
My world hasn't ended yet._

_Maybe happy endings happen after all.  
Maybe to get back on your feet  
you have to take a fall.  
And maybe true love doesn't have to go  
like that of Juliet and her Romeo.  
Maybe some people get to have it all.  
Maybe happy endings happen after all._

_I think that you were made for me.  
I know that I was made for you.  
People may say you're crazy  
but I'm just crazy about you.  
And I don't have to worry  
about if we'll last forever.  
I believe in happily ever after.  
I believe in you and me together._

_Maybe happy endings happen after all.  
Maybe to get back on your feet  
you have to take a fall.  
And maybe true love doesn't have to go  
like that of Juliet and her Romeo.  
Maybe some people get to have it all.  
Maybe happy endings happen after all._

**The End**

**Well, I really hope you enjoyed. You may or may not see more from me for this fandom. I think I'll be drifting over to Make It or Break It to write a Carter/Lo fic, and I still have the Seddie fic I've been working on forever. But I may write more JONAS later on. Please review, even if you hated it. I'd love some comments on the 7 songs I wrote for this fic.**

**Love you all!**

**--Bubbles**


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